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MIL-OSI: Cangrade Includes New AI Products in its Women- and Minority-Owned Business Discount, Making Intelligent Talent Decisions Accessible to All

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

WATERTOWN, Mass., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Cangrade today announced a women- and minority-owned business discount for Jules—the company’s first AI Copilot created to help human resources (HR) professionals make more strategic talent decisions. The addition of Jules to this discount will further enhance businesses’ hiring and talent management decisions by leveraging the valuable data they already have.

Jules gathers intelligence from Cangrade’s talent assessment to answer important questions and uncover insights about everything from hiring and employee growth and development to personal motivators and strategies for improvement. By arming women- and minority-led businesses with powerful and accessible talent intelligence, personalized strategies, and performance predictions, Cangrade aims to even the playing field for those looking to hire and retain top talent.

In honor of Black and Women’s History Months, respectively, Jules is now included in the 35 percent discount on Cangrade’s hiring software. The discount represents the 35 percent of black business owners who are women, 35 percent of women who hold tech positions, the nearly $35,000 less that female entrepreneurs ask for compared to men, and the $35,000 less in startup capital that black entrepreneurs receive on average compared to white ones.

With the future of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives uncertain, one thing remains true: the ability to create better teams attracts better talent. Jules not only helps companies build better teams, but provides the intelligence to support them. Operating as an AI-powered I/O psychologist, Jules enables users to achieve success in areas from performance optimization and crafting the perfect offer letter, to navigating difficult conversations and motivating individuals.

“Over the last several years companies have followed the latest trends in DEI, creating initiatives with good intentions, but in reality were overly performative and ineffective,” said Gershon Goren, Founder and CEO, Cangrade. “We’re putting our money where our mouth is, providing valuable resources that measurably increase the accuracy of performance predictions and remove biases from the hiring process. The result is a stronger and more inclusive workforce.”

For eligible businesses, learn more about our women and minority-owned business discount here. For more information about Cangrade’s AI-powered, bias-free hiring and talent management solutions, visit www.cangrade.com.

About Cangrade
For HR leaders, Cangrade is the bias-free, AI-powered talent intelligence platform. By integrating data into talent acquisition and management processes, Cangrade enables businesses to make strategic and efficient decisions from initial screening through the entire employee lifecycle. Delivering 10x more accurate predictions of talent success and retention than traditional methods, the company’s Pre-Hire Assessment has helped organizations like Wayfair, FDNY, Lamar Advertising, and Applied Industrial Technologies make the right hiring decisions for over 10 million candidates and counting. For more information, visit www.cangrade.com.

Media Contact:
Gina Devine
Public Relations
press@cangrade.com

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Wesco To Double Number of Stores Using Mashgin AI-Powered Checkout

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

PALO ALTO, Calif., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — After a highly successful initial deployment, Wesco convenience stores will expand its use of Mashgin’s AI-powered checkout technology to over 20 locations, Mashgin, the AI-powered checkout company, announced today.

Mashgin’s AI technology eliminates checkout lines, creating a more efficient and customer-friendly shopping experience for stores, particularly during peak transaction times. The kiosks use computer vision to instantly ring up items, without the need to scan barcodes. Customers simply place their items down and are ready to pay. The kiosk can identify multiple items simultaneously in seconds with nearly 100% accuracy.

During the Wesco pilot program, Mashgin kiosks accelerated nearly half a million transactions at over 10 Wesco locations with a median transaction time of 18.7 seconds. Customers at the Wesco stores were able to get back on the road quicker, and Wesco associates were able to attend to other tasks around the store faster.

“Our customers have quickly taken to love Mashgin’s machines – and we’ve loved working with them,” said Nancy Westgate-Sytsema, Co-President of Wesco. “Both the technology and the team are extremely responsive, exactly what we look for in a technology partner.”

Wesco’s expansion will benefit from Mashgin’s integration with Verifone’s Commander system, which seamlessly connects the AI checkout kiosks to key store systems for payment, loyalty, fuel, and more.

“Wesco is enhancing its already fantastic customer experience with this expanded adoption of Mashgin’s technology,” said Jack Hogan, SVP of Partnerships at Mashgin. “Convenience store customers are looking for a quick and efficient buying experience, and by leveraging computer vision technology, a vast database of retail items, and a dedicated support team, Mashgin enables this experience for Wesco and its customers. We’re looking forward to serving and helping expand Wesco’s retail capabilities.”

Mashgin kiosks are in place at over 4,000 locations globally, including over 3,000 convenience stores, 145 professional stadiums and arenas, 100 hospitals, and 50 airports.

Mashgin will continue to innovate checkout experiences by implementing advanced technologies that benefit retailers and their customers. To learn more, visit www.mashgin.com.

About Mashgin:

Mashgin is the world’s fastest checkout system, powered by AI and computer vision. By eliminating barcode scanning, Mashgin allows customers to simply place items on the tray, pay, and be on their way in under 10 seconds. With checkout speeds up to four times faster than traditional systems, Mashgin not only enhances customer satisfaction but also boosts revenue for retailers by reducing wait times and streamlining operations. Founded in 2014 and headquartered in Palo Alto, California, Mashgin is a privately held company backed by NEA, Matrix Partners, Susa Ventures, and Y Combinator. Follow Mashgin on LinkedIn or learn more about Mashgin at www.mashgin.com.

Press Contact:
Quinn Trask
104 West on behalf of Mashgin
Quinn.Trask@104west.com

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/2e6a718a-551d-421d-973f-30cdf4f92c62

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Parkway International Capital Group Kicks Off 2025 with $12.3 Million Refinance for Charleston Boutique Hotel
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

CHARLESTON, S.C., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Parkway International Capital Group (PIC Group) is pleased to announce the successful closing of a $12.3 million refinance loan for a historic boutique hotel in Charleston, South Carolina. This transaction marks PIC Group’s first deal of the year, setting the stage for another strong year of strategic financing solutions for real estate investors and developers.

Supporting Growth in One of America’s Top Travel Destinations
The borrower is a well-established boutique hotel operator with a track record of successfully restoring and managing heritage properties across the Southeast. With Charleston experiencing record-high tourism and occupancy rates, the borrower sought a refinance solution to reduce debt costs and fund property enhancements.
- 52-room luxury boutique hotel housed in a restored 19th-century landmark
- Planned upgrades, including modernized guest suites, sustainability enhancements, and expanded amenities
- Prime location in Charleston’s historic district, a top-ranked U.S. travel destination
- Refinancing structured to optimize cash flow and unlock capital for future investments
“Charleston remains one of the most sought-after destinations in the country, and this financing ensures our borrower can continue delivering an elevated guest experience while optimizing financial performance,” said Jonathan Lockard, VP Originations of Parkway International Capital Group. “We are proud to start the year by providing a tailored financing solution that supports both operational flexibility and long-term success.”

Strategic Loan Terms for Long-Term Growth
PIC Group structured this refinance package to lower the borrower’s debt service while freeing up capital for reinvestment:
- Loan Amount: $12,300,000
- Loan Term: 48 months, interest-only
- Interest Rate: Fixed at 8.75%
- Loan-to-Value (LTV): 70%
- $2 Million Cash-Out Component allocated for property renovations and operational enhancements
“This financing not only lowers our borrower’s annual debt obligations but also allows them to strategically reinvest in the property,” added Jonathan. “With the hospitality sector in Charleston seeing continued strength, this loan positions the hotel for sustained growth and profitability.”

New Year, New Momentum: Faster Deals, Greater Capital Access
As PIC Group’s first transaction of 2025, this deal reflects the firm’s ongoing commitment to helping developers, operators, and investors thrive in today’s market. To enhance efficiency and capital deployment this year, PIC Group has:
- Expanded its investor network, ensuring faster approvals and greater funding flexibility
- Streamlined underwriting and closing processes, allowing for quicker turnaround times
- Increased capital availability for multifamily, hospitality, industrial, and mixed-use projects
Looking Ahead: More Deals on the Horizon
With a strong pipeline for 2025, Parkway International Capital Group remains a trusted capital partner for real estate investors seeking customized financing solutions.

About Parkway International Capital Group
Parkway International Capital Group (PIC Group) is a leading private commercial lending firm, specializing in tailored financing solutions for real estate developers and investors. With a focus on efficiency, innovation, and strategic capital deployment, PIC Group partners with clients to bring high-value real estate projects to life.

Media Contact

Marvin Fincham
Visit our website at pic-group.net
Email us at loans@pic-group.net

The MIL Network –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Research from QphoX, Rigetti, and Qblox Demonstrating Optical Readout Technique for Superconducting Qubits Published in Nature Physics

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

DELFT, The Netherlands and Berkeley, Calif., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — QphoX B.V., a Dutch quantum technology startup that is developing leading frequency conversion systems for quantum applications, Rigetti Computing, Inc. (Nasdaq: RGTI), a pioneer in full-stack quantum-classical computing, and Qblox, a leading innovator in quantum control stack development, today announced that their joint research demonstrating the ability to readout superconducting qubits with an optical transducer was published in Nature Physics.

Quantum computing has the potential to drive transformative breakthroughs in fields such as advanced material design, artificial intelligence, and drug discovery. Of the quantum computing modalities, superconducting qubits are a leading platform towards realizing a practical quantum computer given their fast gate speeds and ability to leverage existing semiconductor industry manufacturing techniques. However, fault-tolerant quantum computing will likely require 10,000 to a million physical qubits. The sheer amount of wiring, amplifiers and microwave components required to operate such large numbers of qubits far exceeds the capacity of modern-day dilution refrigerators, a core component of a superconducting quantum computing system, in terms of both space and passive heat load.

A potential solution to this problem may be to replace coaxial cables and other cryogenic components with optical fibers, which have a considerably smaller footprint and negligible thermal conductivity. The challenge lies in converting the microwave signals used to control qubits into infrared light that can be transmitted through fiber. This is where microwave-to-optical transduction comes into play, a field dedicated to the coherent conversion of microwave photons to optical photons. QphoX has developed transducers with piezo-optomechanical technology that are capable of performing this conversion, forming an interface between superconducting qubits and fiber-optics.

To demonstrate the potential of this technology, QphoX, Rigetti and Qblox connected a transducer to a superconducting qubit, with the goal of measuring its state using light transmitted through an optical fiber. The results of this collaborative effort have been published in Nature Physics. Remarkably, it was discovered that not only is the transducer capable of converting the signal that reads out the qubit, but that the qubit can also be sufficiently protected from decoherence introduced by thermal noise or stray optical photons from the transducer during operation.

“Microwave-to-optics transduction is a rapidly emerging technology with far-reaching implications for quantum computing. Our work demonstrates that transducers are now ready to interface with superconducting qubit technology. This is an exciting and crucial demonstration, with the potential for this technology being far reaching and potentially transformative for the development of quantum computers,” says Dr. Thierry van Thiel, lead author of the work and Lead Quantum Engineer at QphoX.

“Developing more efficient ways to design our systems is key as we work towards fault tolerance. This innovative, scalable approach to qubit signal processing is the result of our strong partnerships with QphoX and Qblox and showcases the value of having a modular technology stack. By allowing our partners to integrate their technology with ours, we are able to discover creative ways to solve long-standing engineering challenges,” says Dr. Subodh Kulkarni, Rigetti CEO.

“Realizing industrial-scale quantum computers comes with solving several critical bottlenecks. Many of these lie in the scalability of the readout and control of qubits. As Qblox is entirely focused on exactly this theme, we are proud to be part of this pivotal demonstration that shows that QphoX microwave-to-optical transducers are a solid route to scalable quantum computing. We look forward to the next steps with Rigetti and QphoX to scale up this technology,” says Dr. Niels Bultink, Qblox CEO.

About QphoX
QphoX is the leading developer of quantum transduction systems that enable quantum computers to network over optical frequencies. Leveraging decades of progress in photonic, MEMS and superconducting device nanofabrication, their single-photon interfaces bridge the gap between microwave, optical and telecom frequencies to provide essential quantum links between computation, state storage and networking. QphoX is based in Delft, the Netherlands. See https://www.qphox.eu/ for more information.

About Rigetti
Rigetti is a pioneer in full-stack quantum computing. The Company has operated quantum computers over the cloud since 2017 and serves global enterprise, government, and research clients through its Rigetti Quantum Cloud Services platform. In 2021, Rigetti began selling on-premises quantum computing systems with qubit counts between 24 and 84 qubits, supporting national laboratories and quantum computing centers. Rigetti’s 9-qubit Novera™ QPU was introduced in 2023 supporting a broader R&D community with a high-performance, on-premises QPU designed to plug into a customer’s existing cryogenic and control systems. The Company’s proprietary quantum-classical infrastructure provides high-performance integration with public and private clouds for practical quantum computing. Rigetti has developed the industry’s first multi-chip quantum processor for scalable quantum computing systems. The Company designs and manufactures its chips in-house at Fab-1, the industry’s first dedicated and integrated quantum device manufacturing facility. Learn more at https://www.rigetti.com/.

About Qblox
Qblox is a leading provider of scalable and modular qubit control stacks. Qblox operates at the frontier of the quantum revolution in supporting academic and industrial labs worldwide. The Qblox control stack, known as the Cluster, combines key technologies for qubit control and readout and supports a wide variety of qubit technologies. Qblox has grown to 130+ employees and continues to innovate to enable the quantum industry. Learn more at https://www.qblox.com/.

Reference
T.C. van Thiel, M.J. Weaver, F. Berto, P. Duivestein, M. Lemang, K.L. Schuurman, M. Žemlička, F. Hijazi, A.C. Bernasconi, C. Ferrer, E. Cataldo, E. Lachman, M. Field, Y. Mohan, F.K. de Vries, C.C. Bultink, J.C. van Oven, J.Y. Mutus, R. Stockill, and S. Gröblacher, Optical readout of a superconducting qubit using a piezo-optomechanical transducer, Nature Physics, 11 February 2025.
https://www.nature.com/articles/s41567-024-02742-3

QphoX Media Contact
Simon Gröblacher, CEO
press@qphox.eu

Rigetti Media Contact
Rebecca Malamud, Senior Marketing & Communications Manager
press@rigetti.com

Qblox Media Contact
Eva Flipse, Head of Marketing
eflipse@qblox.com

Cautionary Language and Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this communication may be considered “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the federal securities laws, including statements with respect to the Company’s expectations with respect to its future success and performance, including expectations with respect to the ability to use an optical transducer to perform readout on the Company’s superconducting qubits; the potential with respect to quantum computing driving transformative breakthroughs in fields such as advanced material design, artificial intelligence, and drug discovery; the number of qubits necessary to reach fault tolerance; potential to replace coaxial cables and other cryogenic components with optical fibers; the ability to convert microwave signals used to control qubits into infrared light that can be transmitted through fiber; expectations of using optical transducers to protect a qubit from decoherence introduced by thermal noise or stray optical photons; readiness of interfacing optical transducers with semiconducting qubit technology; expectations with respect to scaling to create larger qubit systems without sacrificing gate performance using the Company’s modular chip architecture, including expectations with respect to the Company’s anticipated systems; expectations with respect to the Company’s partners and customers and the quantum computing plans and activities thereof; and expectations with respect to the anticipated stages of quantum technology maturation, including the Company’s ability to develop a quantum computer that is able to solve practical, operationally relevant problems significantly better, faster, or cheaper than a current classical solution and achieve quantum advantage on the anticipated timing or at all; expectations with respect to the quantum computing industry and related industries. These forward-looking statements are based upon estimates and assumptions that, while considered reasonable by the Company and its management, are inherently uncertain. Factors that may cause actual results to differ materially from current expectations include, but are not limited to: the Company’s ability to achieve milestones, technological advancements, including with respect to its technology roadmap, help unlock quantum computing, and develop practical applications; the ability of the Company to obtain government contracts successfully and in a timely manner and the availability of government funding; the potential of quantum computing; the ability of the Company to expand its QPU sales and the Novera QPU Partnership Program; the success of the Company’s partnerships and collaborations; the Company’s ability to accelerate its development of multiple generations of quantum processors; the outcome of any legal proceedings that may be instituted against the Company or others; the ability to maintain relationships with customers and suppliers and attract and retain management and key employees; costs related to operating as a public company; changes in applicable laws or regulations; the possibility that the Company may be adversely affected by other economic, business, or competitive factors; the Company’s estimates of expenses and profitability; the evolution of the markets in which the Company competes; the ability of the Company to implement its strategic initiatives, expansion plans and continue to innovate its existing services; the expected use of proceeds from the Company’s past and future financings or other capital; the sufficiency of the Company’s cash resources; unfavorable conditions in the Company’s industry, the global economy or global supply chain, including financial and credit market fluctuations and uncertainty, rising inflation and interest rates, disruptions in banking systems, increased costs, international trade relations, political turmoil, natural catastrophes, warfare (such as the ongoing military conflict between Russia and Ukraine and related sanctions and the state of war between Israel, Hamas and Hezbollah and related threat of a larger conflict), and terrorist attacks; the Company’s ability to maintain compliance with the continued listing standards of the Nasdaq Capital Market; and other risks and uncertainties set forth in the section entitled “Risk Factors” and “Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements” in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023 and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2024, and other documents filed by the Company from time to time with the SEC. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and the Company assumes no obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements other than as required by applicable law. The Company does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectations.

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Parallels Introduces New “Elevate Now” Partner Program to Boost Partner Growth and Success
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

AUSTIN, Texas, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Parallels, a global leader in virtualization and end-user computing solutions, today introduced its “Elevate Now” Partner Program, designed to equip new and existing partners with more resources, greater profitability, and enhanced support. The program updates, which focus on delivering increased value and growth opportunities, are aimed at enabling resellers, managed service providers (MSPs), value added resellers (VARs), and system integrators (SI) to thrive.

“Our goal with this program redesign is to ensure that all partners, regardless of size, can navigate the changes and disruption in the traditional virtual desktop landscape,” said Michelle Chiantera, Chief Revenue Officer for Parallels. “With substantial updates to discounts, program tiers, and support, we’re delivering a partner-first, channel-first model that helps partners meet market demands, boost their bottom line, and offers an attractive alternative to Citrix.”

Key benefits of Parallels’ “Elevate Now” Partner Program include:
- Updated program tiers. In addition to added benefits for existing Silver, Gold, and Platinum partners, Parallels has introduced a new Essentials tier, tailored for smaller partners who may not yet meet the minimum deal size requirements of higher tiers. This entry-level tier provides resources and support to help these partners grow and advance through the program. Plus, a new partner portal offers streamlined access to vital resources, empowering all partners to maximize program benefits and succeed.
- Expanded partner benefits. Higher discounts, enriched support, faster onboarding, and free enablement and certification across all program tiers ensure partners can more easily grow and thrive.
- Increased profitability. The updated discount model emphasizes new business generation, offering higher margins for resellers, while enabling partners to manage and fully benefit from customer renewals.
“With our partner-sourced sales pipeline doubling and new deal registrations tripling over the past year, we’re excited to see that our partners are thriving,” said Chiantera. “The changes we’ve made to our program are designed to sustain this momentum, giving partners even greater profit margins and the resources they need to unlock new opportunities.”

“The benefits we receive as strategic partners allow us to increase our margins through enhanced deal registration and MDF investments, helping us grow and expand our Parallels footprint. Parallels also supports us in maintaining our installed base, which has become a key market differentiator for us.” – Pedro Guerreiro, Chief Solutions Officer, A2it Technology

Parallels extends migration program

Parallels is empowering Citrix and Omnissa customers to transition smoothly to Parallels solutions with its specialized migration program, extended through to May 31, 2025. This program includes tailored migration tools and financial incentives, such as a free one-year license for customers committing to a three-year paid subscription and additional rebates for gold and platinum partners. For more details, including the program terms, conditions, and complete eligibility requirements, visit: www.parallels.com/lp/parallels-migration.

Flexible SPLA billing simplifies license management for MSPs

Parallels offers tailored support for MSPs through its flexible SPLA concurrent billing model, enabling partners to manage customer licenses on a monthly basis with ease and scalability. With this model, MSPs can access Parallels’ powerful suite of solutions to deliver secure, high-performance virtual workspaces without upfront commitments. To learn how Parallels can streamline your services, visit www.parallels.com/partners/msp/.

Empower customer success with Parallels’ suite of end-user computing solutions

“Elevate Now” partners gain access to Parallels’ comprehensive suite end-user computing solutions, including Parallels RAS, Parallels Secure Workspace, Parallels DaaS, and Parallels Browser Isolation. Learn more at www.parallels.com/partners.

About Parallels

Parallels is a global leading brand in cross-platform solutions that make it simple for businesses and individuals to use and access the applications and files they need on any device or operating system. Parallels helps customers leverage the best technology out there, whether it’s Windows, Mac, ChromeOS, iOS, Android, or the cloud. Parallels solves complex engineering and user-experience problems by making it simple and cost-effective for businesses and individual customers to use applications anywhere, anytime. For more information, please visit www.parallels.com.

© 2025 Parallels International GmbH. All rights reserved. Parallels is a trademark or registered trademark of Parallels International GmbH. in Canada, the United States and/or elsewhere. Mac is a trademark of Apple Inc. Android and ChromeOS are trademarks of Google LLC. All other company, product and service names, logos, brands and any registered or unregistered trademarks mentioned are used for identification purposes only and remain the exclusive property of their respective owners. For all notices and legal information please visit www.parallels.com/about/legal/

Contact:
Ashley Ruess
ashley.ruess@alludo.com

Photos accompanying this announcement are available at:

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/8652a83e-758b-429e-8cb6-22324f22f756

https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/bfbf424c-3b2e-442b-8fa5-89b0c64d2fec

The MIL Network –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: StoneX and Fiserv Partner to Enhance Cross-Border Payment Capabilities for Financial Institutions

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

NEW YORK, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — StoneX Group Inc. (“StoneX”; NASDAQ: SNEX) announced that its Payments Division (“StoneX Payments”) has entered into a partnership with Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE: FI) to extend its advanced cross-border payments offering to financial institutions. In conjunction with Fiserv’s Payments Exchange Services, community banks and credit unions will have an opportunity to directly leverage StoneX’s institutional-grade infrastructure, resulting in dramatically improved global reach, ultra-competitive pricing, and robust transparency across cross-border payment lifecycles.

Payments Exchange Services from Fiserv is a flexible, web-based platform for completing end-to-end, real-time payments 24/7/365 through the RTP® Network from The Clearing House and the US Federal Reserve’s FedNow® Service, while also offering a range of foreign exchange and global payment capabilities.

“This partnership with Fiserv is a key part of our broader strategic vision to expand StoneX Payments’ reach and enhance cross-border money movement for financial institutions globally,” said Thiago Vieira, Global Head of StoneX Payments. “This collaboration represents a significant opportunity for banks and credit unions to obtain enhanced capabilities that have traditionally been reserved for only the world’s largest financial institutions.”

StoneX’s broad global coverage eliminates redundancies and streamlines processes associated with legacy systems and networks, which are reliant on multiple intermediaries to facilitate international transfers. This approach can result in significant cost reduction, faster payment fulfillment, and an enhanced client experience throughout the payment lifecycle.

“Over time, through our close work with community banks and credit unions, we’ve recognized the critical need for a more competitive offering compared to what the market has traditionally provided,” said Stephen Kuhl, Managing Director, Financial Institutions for StoneX Payments. “Our platform empowers financial institutions to significantly elevate their client offering with a global payments solution and leverage multiple benefits, including improved client retention, new revenue streams, and enhanced competitiveness. Community banks and credit unions increasingly have realized that offering international payments services is essential to meeting the needs of their diverse client base, including businesses, high-net-worth clients, and individuals at large with global requirements.”

“At Fiserv, we recognize that foreign exchange and international payments are an invaluable part of community banks’ and credit unions’ product suites. It is imperative that they offer capabilities on par with the broader competitive landscape,” said Justin Jackson, Senior Vice President of Enterprise Payment Solutions at Fiserv. “We look forward to partnering with StoneX to bring their comprehensive service offering to this segment.”

About Fiserv:

Fiserv, Inc. (NYSE: FI), a Fortune 500 company, aspires to move money and information in a way that moves the world. As a global leader in payments and financial technology, the company helps clients achieve best-in-class results through a commitment to innovation and excellence in areas including account processing and digital banking solutions; card issuer processing and network services; payments; e-commerce; merchant acquiring and processing; and the Clover® cloud-based point-of-sale and business management platform. Fiserv is a member of the S&P 500® Index and one of Fortune® World’s Most Admired Companies™. Visit fiserv.com and follow on social media for more information and the latest company news.

About StoneX:

StoneX Group Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates a global financial services network that connects companies, organizations, traders, and investors to the global market ecosystem through a unique blend of digital platforms, end-to-end clearing and execution services, high-touch service, and deep expertise. The company strives to be the one trusted partner to its clients, providing its network, products, and services to allow them to pursue trading opportunities, manage their market risks, make investments, and improve their business performance. A Fortune 100 company headquartered in New York City and listed on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (NASDAQ: SNEX), StoneX Group Inc. and its 4,300+ employees serve more than 54,000 commercial, institutional, and global payments clients, and more than 400,000 retail accounts, from more than 80 offices spread across six continents.

NASDAQ: SNEX
www.stonex.com

For more information contact:
Stephen Kuhl, Managing Director: Financial Institutions
Stephen.kuhl@stonex.com

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Varonis at ViVE 2025: Reduce the PHI Blast Radius and Safely Enable AI With Automation

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

MIAMI, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Varonis Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: VRNS), a leader in data security, today announced its upcoming participation at ViVE 2025, February 16 – 19 in Nashville, Tenn.

Today’s bad actors don’t break in — they log in. Varonis secures PHI by limiting an organization’s blast radius — all the damage an attacker can do with just one comprised identity — in SaaS, IaaS, and hybrid environments. By ensuring only the right users can access the data they need, Varonis helps organizations maintain compliance with evolving HIPAA regulations and protect against overexposure.

Varonis Highlights at ViVE 2025:

Meet Varonis in Person: Visit Varonis at Viosk #2825 inside the Cybersecurity Pavillion for 1:1 demos and giveaways. Learn how the Varonis Data Security Platform helps hospitals and healthcare systems secure sensitive patient data, automate compliance, and reduce ransomware risk.

Expert Session: “PHI-ght for Your Right to AI Party!” Varonis Field CTO Brian Vecci will shed light on the crucial need for healthcare organizations to gain visibility into AI use, data access, and PHI exposure. He’ll discuss how healthcare leaders can meet current requirements and adapt to future HIPAA changes.

Date: Tuesday, February 18 at 2 p.m. CT
Location: Cybersecurity Pavilion

Additional Resources

About Varonis
Varonis (Nasdaq: VRNS) is a leader in data security, fighting a different battle than conventional cybersecurity companies. Our cloud-native Data Security Platform continuously discovers and classifies critical data, removes exposures, and detects advanced threats with AI-powered automation.

Thousands of organizations worldwide trust Varonis to defend their data wherever it lives — across SaaS, IaaS, and hybrid cloud environments. Customers use Varonis to automate a wide range of security outcomes, including data security posture management (DSPM), data classification, data access governance (DAG), data detection and response (DDR), data loss prevention (DLP), and insider risk management.

Varonis protects data first, not last. Learn more at www.varonis.com.

Investor Relations Contact:
Tim Perz
Varonis Systems, Inc.
646-640-2112
investors@varonis.com

News Media Contact:
Rachel Hunt
Varonis Systems, Inc.
877-292-8767 (ext. 1598)
pr@varonis.com

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: AvePoint Launches the Next Generation of Elements to Modernize Managed Services for MSPs
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

JERSEY CITY, N.J., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — AvePoint (Nasdaq: AVPT), the global leader in data security, governance and resilience, today announced the launch of the next generation of AvePoint Elements to transform managed service providers’ (MSPs) client, cloud, and tenant management with an AI-enhanced platform for data security, IT management, and operational efficiency. Launching the next generation of AvePoint Elements underscores the Company’s continued investment in its channel business, which makes up over half of its annual recurring revenue (ARR), by equipping partners with new security-centric recurring revenue streams through a seamless, all-in-one platform.

“Our partners have a massive opportunity to unlock new recurring revenue streams through security, backup, workspace management and compliance services this year,” said Coby Liang, Head of EMEA, AvePoint. “Our Elements Platform empowers MSPs to deploy standardized security and compliance configurations consistently across multiple tenants, helping them efficiently manage increasing data volumes and complex environments, thus driving growth and capitalizing on the expanding cybersecurity market.”

According to Canalys, over 90% of cybersecurity solutions will be partner-delivered in 2025. MSPs using the next generation of AvePoint Elements can secure client data and build additional service offerings to rapidly tap into this opportunity without needing additional resources. Benefits include:
- Enhanced operational efficiency: Without a unified platform, MSPs face complex client management, slow onboarding and issue resolution, and a lack of integration for various tools. AvePoint Elements integrates with AvePoint’s award-winning compliance and data protection solutions and features seamless API integrations, enabling automation and remote management for efficient service delivery. Additionally, it provides centralized baseline management and workspace governance, ensuring consistency and efficient lifecycle management across customer tenants.
- Increased profitability: AvePoint Elements automates manual tasks and simplifies transactions between partners and their customers, empowering MSPs to focus on value-added services and lower their operational costs. With AvePoint’s multi-SaaS support, MSPs can serve customers across clouds from within one platform, driving their total addressable markets up with one vendor and providing more opportunities to offer security, backup and compliance services.
- Seamless scalability: The AvePoint Elements Platform offers centralized management for multi-tenant configurations so MSPs can deploy, track and enforce security and compliance across multiple tenants. Using automation to scale, this enables MSPs to increase total volume of data managed and secured and standardize their onboarding process for new customers.
- Advanced security and control: Without centralized policies, MSPs lack visibility, are at high risk of non-compliance and have inadequate threat protection. With proactive security monitoring and automated policy enforcement through AvePoint Elements, MSPs can ensure robust protection and premium data security to all customers from one platform.
“MSPs have significant revenue opportunities surrounding multi-cloud data security and workspace management, especially when they offer more than one solution to their customers within a managed service,” said Scott Sacket, Senior Vice President of Partner Strategy, AvePoint. “Through our private preview, partners have already seen a 40% increase in average revenue per user when they integrate more than two solutions into a managed service. On top of that, our private preview partners saw that time wasted on operations and infrastructure, which can take away from valuable service delivery and customer care, has already been reduced by 85%.”

To learn more about the next generation of AvePoint Elements, visit our website.

About AvePoint:

Securing the Future. AvePoint is a global leader in data security, governance, and resilience, and over 21,000 customers worldwide rely on our solutions to modernize the digital workplace across Microsoft, Google, Salesforce and other collaboration environments. AvePoint’s global channel partner program includes over 3,500 managed service providers, value added resellers and systems integrators, with our solutions available in more than 100 cloud marketplaces. To learn more, visit www.avepoint.com.

Forward-Looking Statements:

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the “safe harbor” provisions of the United States Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 and other federal securities laws including statements regarding the future performance of and market opportunities for AvePoint. These forward-looking statements generally are identified by the words “believe,” “project,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “strategy,” “future,” “opportunity,” “plan,” “may,” “should,” “will,” “would,” “will be,” “will continue,” “will likely result,” and similar expressions. Forward-looking statements are predictions, projections and other statements about future events that are based on current expectations and assumptions and, as a result, are subject to risks and uncertainties. Many factors could cause actual future events to differ materially from the forward-looking statements in this press release, including but not limited to: changes in the competitive and regulated industries in which AvePoint operates, variations in operating performance across competitors, changes in laws and regulations affecting AvePoint’s business and changes in AvePoint’s ability to implement business plans, forecasts, and ability to identify and realize additional opportunities, and the risk of downturns in the market and the technology industry. You should carefully consider the foregoing factors and the other risks and uncertainties described in the “Risk Factors” section of AvePoint’s most recent Annual Report on Form 10-K and Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Copies of these and other documents filed by AvePoint from time to time are available on the SEC’s website, www.sec.gov. These filings identify and address other important risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events and results to differ materially from those contained in the forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. Readers are cautioned not to put undue reliance on forward-looking statements, and AvePoint does not assume any obligation and does not intend to update or revise these forward-looking statements after the date of this release, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except as required by law. AvePoint does not give any assurance that it will achieve its expectations. Unless the context otherwise indicates, references in this press release to the terms “AvePoint”, “the Company”, “we”, “our” and “us” refer to AvePoint, Inc. and its subsidiaries.

Disclosure Information:

AvePoint uses the https://www.avepoint.com/ir website as a means of disclosing material non-public information and for complying with its disclosure obligations under Regulation FD.

Investor Contact
AvePoint
Jamie Arestia
ir@avepoint.com
(551) 220-5654

Media Contact
AvePoint
Nicole Caci
pr@avepoint.com
(201) 201-8143

The MIL Network –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: ControlUp Launches ControlUp for Apps, Expands DEX Platform Support for SaaS and Web Applications
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — ControlUp, at the forefront of Digital Employee Experience (DEX) management, today announced the launch of ControlUp for Apps, a new addition to its acclaimed ControlUp ONE DEX platform. ControlUp for Apps provides unparalleled real-time visibility and proactive management for SaaS and web applications, addressing critical visibility gaps that IT teams face in today’s era of hybrid and composite employee workspaces.

The use of SaaS applications is exploding, creating new security and management challenges. According to the 2024 Gartner^® Magic Quadrant™ for SaaS Management Platforms¹, “Through 2027, organizations that fail to centrally manage SaaS life cycles will remain five times more susceptible to a cyber incident or data loss due to incomplete visibility into SaaS usage and configuration.” And further, “Through 2027, organizations that fail to attain centralized visibility and coordinate SaaS life cycles will overspend on SaaS by at least 25% due to unused entitlements and unnecessary, overlapping tools.”

“ControlUp for Apps represents a pivotal advancement in how IT teams manage and optimize the performance of the SaaS and web applications employees increasingly rely on to get work done,” said Guy Weintraub, Vice President of Product, ControlUp. “Using our deep insights and exclusive issue resolution processes, ControlUp for Apps is uniquely positioned to transform the service desk’s approach to application management, without requiring dedicated domain training or expertise, making a significant impact on organizational security and productivity.”

Easy to use with fast time to value, ControlUp for Apps enables IT teams to quickly identify and resolve issues specific to employee experiences or broader systemic problems without the need for specialized SaaS expertise. This capability is crucial, given the increasing reliance on diverse and complex applications in enterprise environments. Key features for a range of use cases include:
- For the IT Service Desk: Enhanced service desk efficiency by integrating key performance metrics and errors into ControlUp ONE’s existing employee-centric views. It allows service desk teams to quickly pinpoint issues across the end user’s digital workplace, aiding in the rapid identification and remediation of root causes related to SaaS or web application issues. This improved troubleshooting capability ensures that end users can return to peak productivity without unnecessary delays or escalations.
- For IT Desktop Teams: Provides IT desktop teams with enhanced visibility into the digital workplace experience by monitoring SaaS and web applications in real time. This visibility is crucial for identifying and addressing blind spots that often cause delays and miscommunications among technology teams. With ControlUp for Apps, desktop teams gain the insights needed to preemptively address issues, without requiring domain-specific expertise or training, reducing the finger-pointing that can occur between technology owners.
- For IT Operations: Offers IT operations teams comprehensive health and usage insights for all monitored SaaS and web applications. The platform’s intuitive dashboards display detailed performance data, enabling proactive management of application health. This capability ensures that IT can maintain high levels of service continuity and application availability, which is critical for supporting the productivity of the modern workforce.
ControlUp for Apps integrates technology acquired from Avanite, a pioneer in user and browser management technology which became part of the ControlUp innovation engine in November 2023. ControlUp for Apps is tightly integrated into the ControlUp ONE platform and utilizes features such as custom reporting, alerting, and data export automation to enrich the existing SaaS and web application data that ControlUp already provides through features such as synthetic monitoring and Secure DX User Risk Analytics.

ControlUp for Apps is available now for physical endpoints as part of the ControlUp ONE platform. For more information, read this blog, join our upcoming webinar on February 19th, 11 A.M. ET, or start a free trial here.

About ControlUp
ControlUp eliminates digital workplace friction for both IT teams and employees, fostering a productive, high-performing work environment. By enhancing the digital experience across any environment with actionable, AI-driven insights and proactive remediation tools, ControlUp’s scalable Digital Employee Experience (DEX) platform reduces the cost and complexity of workspace management while boosting efficiency and delivering measurable ROI across the organization. Nearly 2,000 customers worldwide, including more than one-third of the Fortune 100, trust ControlUp. Learn more at https://www.controlup.com.

Press Contacts:
ControlUp PR
media@controlup.com

¹Gartner^® Magic Quadrant™ for SaaS Management Platforms, September 2024, by Tom Cipolla, Yolanda Harris, Jaswant Kalay, Dan Wilson, Ron Blair, Lina Al Dana. GARTNER and Magic Quadrant are registered trademarks of Gartner, Inc. and/or its affiliates in the U.S. and internationally and are used herein with permission. All rights reserved.

The MIL Network –
February 12, 2025

MIL-OSI: Investeringsforeningen Nykredit Invest Balance suspender midlertidig handel med udvalgte afdelinger

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

Nykredit Portefølje Administration A/S anmodede den 11. februar 2025 Nasdaq Copenhagen om at suspendere udvalgte afdelinger kl. 12, grundet tekniske udfordringer.

Suspensionen blev ophævet kl. 14:33.

ISIN	Fund Name	Order Book Code
DK0061671013	Bæredygtig Defensiv KL	NBIBDKL
DK0061671286	Bæredygtig Moderat KL	NBIBMKL
DK0061671369	Bæredygtig Offensiv KL	NBIBOKL
DK0016188733	Defensiv KL	NBIDEKL
DK0016188816	Moderat KL	NBIMOKL
DK0060441749	Offensiv KL	NBIOFKL

Eventuelle spørgsmål vedrørende denne meddelelse kan rettes til npa.pm@nykredit.dk eller JNA@nykredit.dk

Med venlig hilsen

Nykredit Portefølje Administration A/S

Tage Fabrin-Brasted

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025

MIL-OSI Global: Learning a new language? Your mindset matters more than ‘having a knack’
Source: The Conversation – Canada – By Xijia Zhang, Graduate Student, Department of Psychology, University of Alberta

Know that every time you manage to learn a new word, or manage to get your message across in the language you are learning and you are improving. (Shutterstock)

If you stumble when you need to talk to someone in a language that isn’t your native language, do you think: “I just don’t have the knack for languages” or “Maybe I am not cut out to learn another language?”

Learning and using a language other than your mother tongue can be a daunting challenge. The good news is that everyone is smart enough to learn another language. An important part of that process is developing a mindset that will help you to succeed.

What is a language mindset?

We study people’s motivation to learn new languages from the perspective of language mindset theory. Language mindset theory shows that what people believe about aptitude has a role to play in language learning.

This theory concerns learners’ beliefs about whether they can change their aptitude for learning and using languages, and how different beliefs are associated with different outcomes, including language proficiency.

If learners think they can improve their ability when learning something hard about a new language, or when they didn’t do well in certain aspects of language learning, they won’t be scared off by thinking that their current level of ability is low.

Learners may even feel that these difficulties or failures are chances to learn something new and to improve their language ability. They remain hopeful and confident about what they can potentially achieve in language learning. They focus on what they can do to improve their language skills through the learning process, rather than merely surviving the interaction, getting a good grade or doing better than other people.

A growth or a fixed mindset

Language mindset theory — pertaining to learners’ beliefs about their aptitude for learning and using languages — can be differentiated into three types of views:
1. General language intelligence about whether a person believes they can change their ability to use spoken and written language to express themselves and communicate with others;
2. Beliefs about their aptitude for learning a new language;
3. Beliefs regarding whether their ability to learn a new language is in any way related to age.
If a person thinks these three types of language aptitude are something they’re born with and cannot change, they could be classified as a learner with a fixed mindset.

If they feel they can improve one or more of these aspects of language aptitude, and especially second-language aptitude, they could be characterized as a growth-mindset learner. Ultimately, learners with a growth mindset are likely to become more proficient in the language they are learning than a person with a fixed mindset.

Our research shows that about 20 per cent of language learners have a growth mindset, another 20 per cent have a fixed mindset and the majority (60 per cent) have a mixed mindset.

How teachers can help

Although people are increasingly using digital apps like Duolingo, language courses remain a common way for people to learn languages — and language teachers can help learners develop a growth mindset.

Teachers have a role promoting having a growth mindset.
(Shutterstock)

Teachers can help by reminding learners that they can improve their language intelligence through their efforts. For low-stakes assignments and tests, teachers can encourage learners to take risks and attempt new challenges and use these moments as an opportunity to learn something new.

Teachers should also provide feedback that focuses on the learning process; for example, what types of learning strategies learners could use, whether they need to work harder and what resources could be helpful for their language learning.

In this way, teachers convey an important message that it’s OK to make mistakes, and what learners do in the learning process matters more than how proficient they currently are. Even when learners are faced with high-stakes exams, teachers can still help learners connect the content of the exams to using the language in real-life communication.

If teachers can create a classroom environment that fosters a growth language mindset, learners are more likely to continue learning the language.

Mindset can shift, aptitude can grow

If you are a language learner who finds yourself thinking that your language aptitude is fixed, it’s never too late to change your belief.

Every time you master a new word, or acquire a new aspect of grammar or even just manage to get your message across to another person in the language you are learning, you are improving.

If you are having a hard time learning a certain aspect of the language, try using a different learning strategy, finding resources that can help you or simply giving yourself more time to practice. Remember, everyone is smart enough to learn a new language.

Xijia Zhang is affiliated with the University of Alberta.

Kimberly Noels works for the University of Alberta. She receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

– ref. Learning a new language? Your mindset matters more than ‘having a knack’ – https://theconversation.com/learning-a-new-language-your-mindset-matters-more-than-having-a-knack-246825
MIL OSI – Global Reports –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: NOAA’s vast public weather data powers the local forecasts on your phone and TV – a private company alone couldn’t match it

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Christine Wiedinmyer, Associate Director for Science at CIRES, University of Colorado Boulder

A forecaster monitors incoming data for Hurricane Irma in 2017 at the National Hurricane Center, part of the NOAA. Matt McClain/The Washington Post via Getty Images

When a hurricane or tornado starts to form, your local weather forecasters can quickly pull up maps tracking its movement and showing where it’s headed. But have you ever wondered where they get all that information?

The forecasts can seem effortless, but behind the scenes, a vast network of satellites, airplanes, radar, computer models and weather analysts are providing access to the latest data – and warnings when necessary. This data comes from analysts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, known as NOAA, and its National Weather Service.

Atmospheric scientists Christine Wiedinmyer and Kari Bowen, who is a former National Weather Service forecaster, explained NOAA’s central role in most U.S. weather forecasts.

When people see a weather report on TV, what went on at NOAA to make that forecast possible?

A lot of the weather information Americans rely on starts with real-time data collected by NOAA satellites, airplanes, weather balloons, radar and maritime buoys, as well as weather stations around the world.

All of that information goes into the agency’s computers, which process the data to begin defining what’s going on in different parts of the atmosphere.

NOAA forecasters use computer models that simulate physics and the behavior of the atmosphere, along with their own experience and local knowledge, to start to paint a picture of the weather – what’s coming in a few minutes or hours or days. They also use that data to project seasonal conditions out over weeks or months.

NOAA’s data comes from many sources to provide a more complete picture of developing climate and weather conditions. Communities and economies rely on that constantly updated information.
NOAA

When severe weather is on the way, the agency issues the official alerts you’ll see in the news and on your phone.

All of this analysis happens before the information reaches private weather apps and TV stations.

No matter who you are, you can freely access that data and the analyses. In fact, a large number of private companies use NOAA data to create fancy maps and other weather products that they sell.

It would be extremely difficult to do all of that without NOAA.

The agency operates a fleet of 18 satellites that are packed with instruments dedicated to observing weather phenomena essential to predicting the weather, from how hot the land surface is to the water content of the atmosphere. Some are geostationary satellites which sit high above different parts of the U.S. measuring weather conditions 24/7. Others orbit the planet. Many of these are operated as part of partnerships with NASA or the Air Force.

Some private companies are starting to invest in satellites, but it would take an enormous amount of money to replicate the range of instrumentation and coverage that NOAA has in place. Satellites only last so long and take time to build, so NOAA is continually planning for the future, and using its technical expertise to develop new instruments and computer algorithms to interpret the data.

NOAA’s low earth orbiting satellites circle the planet from pole to pole and across the equator 14 times a day to provide a full picture of the year twice a day. The agency also has geostationary satellites that provide continuous coverage over the U.S.
NOAA

Maritime buoys are another measuring system that would be difficult to replicate. Over 1,300 buoys across oceans around the world measure water temperature, wind and wave height – all of which are essential for coastal warnings, as well as long-term forecasts.

Weather observation has been around a long time. President Ulysses S. Grant created the first national weather service in the War Department in 1870. It became a civilian service in 1880 under the Department of Agriculture and is now in the Commerce Department. The information its scientists and technologists produce is essential for safety and also benefits people and industries in a lot of ways.

Could a private company create forecasts on its own without NOAA data?

It would be difficult for one company to provide comprehensive weather data in a reliable way that is also accessible to the entire public.

Some companies might be able to launch their own satellite, but one satellite only gives you part of the picture. NOAA’s weather observation network has been around for a long time and collects data from points all over the U.S. and the oceans. Without that robust data, computer models and the broad network of forecasters and developers, forecasting also becomes less reliable.

Analyzing that data is also complex. You’re not going to be able to take satellite data, run a model on a standard laptop and suddenly have a forecast.

And there’s a question of whether a private company would want to take on the legal risk of being responsible for the nation’s forecasts and severe weather warnings.

Neil Jacobs, nominated to oversee NOAA, explains why the agency is essential for accurate national weather forecasting, and why private companies might not want to take on the legal risk on their own.

NOAA is taxpayer-funded, so it is a public good – its services provide safety and security for everyone, not just those who can pay for it.

If weather data was only available at a price, one town might be able to afford the weather information necessary to protect its residents, while a smaller town or a rural area across the state might not. If you’re in a tornado-prone area or coastal zone, that information can be the difference between life or death.

Is climate data and research into the changing climate important for forecasts?

The Earth’s systems – its land, water and the atmosphere – are changing, and we have to be able to assess how those changes will impact weather tomorrow, in two weeks and far into the future.

Rising global temperatures affect weather patterns. Dryness can fuel wildfires. Forecasts have to take the changing climate into account to be accurate, no matter who is creating the forecast.

Drought is an example. The dryness of the Earth controls how much water gets exchanged with the atmosphere to form clouds and rainfall. To have an accurate weather prediction, we need to know how dry things are at the surface and how that has changed over time. That requires long-term climate information.

NOAA doesn’t do all of this by itself – who else is involved?

NOAA partners with private sector, academia, nonprofits and many others around the world to ensure that everyone has the best information to produce the most robust weather forecasts. Private weather companies and media also play important roles in getting those forecasts and alerts out more widely to the public.

A lot of businesses rely on accuracy from NOAA’s weather data and forecasts: aviation, energy companies, insurance, even modern tractors’ precision farming equipment. The agency’s long-range forecasts are essential for managing state reservoirs to ensure enough water is saved and to avoid flooding.

The government agency can be held accountable in a way private businesses are not because it answers to Congress. So, the data is trustworthy, accessible and developed with the goal to protect public safety and property for everyone. Could the same be said if only for-profit companies were producing that data?

Christine Wiedinmyer is the CIRES Associate Director for Science. CIRES is a CU Boulder research institute that has a cooperative agreement (grant) with NOAA called the Cooperative Institute for Earth Systems Research and Data Science, CIESRDS. Wiedinmyer’s funding is primarily from NOAA, which supports more than 400 CIRES CU Boulder employees.

Kari Bowen is the Science and Administration Manager. CIRES is a CU Boulder research institute with a cooperative agreement (grant) with NOAA called the Cooperative Institute for Earth Systems Research and Data Science, CIESRDS. Bowen’s funding is from NOAA, which supports more than 400 CIRES CU Boulder employees.

– ref. NOAA’s vast public weather data powers the local forecasts on your phone and TV – a private company alone couldn’t match it – https://theconversation.com/noaas-vast-public-weather-data-powers-the-local-forecasts-on-your-phone-and-tv-a-private-company-alone-couldnt-match-it-249451

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Video: State of the Nation Address Debate: Day 1 | 11 February- Part 2

Source: Republic of South Africa (video statements)

State of the Nation Address Debate: Day 1 | 11 February
#SONA2025 #GovZAupdates

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eFZcokcVYk

MIL OSI Video –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Mayor’s Violence Reduction Unit secures funding boost to deliver key youth work interventions driving down violence
Source: Mayor of London
- Government invests £9.4m in violence prevention in London
- New funding to build on delivery of youth workers embedded in hospital and police custody
- Data shows 90 per cent of young people arrested did not reoffend and three-quarters reduced their risk of harm as a result of interventions by youth workers
- National investment to work alongside Sadiq’s record funding for prevention and early intervention work
The Mayor of London’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU) has secured £9.4 million investment from the Home Office to build on youth work intervention programmes that are working to drive down violence in the capital.

New funding will enable London’s VRU to deliver key violence prevention work, which includes embedding teams of skilled and experienced youth workers in hospitals and in police custody, to offer support, guidance and a route away from violence for young people.

Youth workers will continue delivering diversionary work from eight A&E hospitals and four Major Trauma Centres. Delivered by St Giles Trust, Catch22/Redthread and Oasis, hospital locations are determined by the levels of young victims of violence in the surrounding area.

It builds on a programme which has supported more than 3,100 young people since 2022, and contributed to significant reductions in young people deemed high risk to others or to further violence. After engaging with a youth worker, 77 per cent reduced their risk of harm from others and 73 per cent felt safer post intervention.

Government investment in the VRU, which was set up by the Mayor in 2019 and the first in England and Wales, will also fund youth workers embedded in police custody suites across London. The Divert and Engage programmes, which involves youth workers embedded in police custody, are reaching 10,000 young people at a point of crisis with two-thirds achieving positive outcomes in reintegration into education, training or employment.

For those up to 18, nearly 90 per cent arrested for violent offences did not reoffend over the next 12 months following engagement with a youth worker.  

Youth workers based in hospital and in police custody provide an opportunity to intervene in a young person’s life much earlier. Known as the ‘reachable, teachable moment’ skilled youth workers engage with young people when they arrive at hospital with injuries or after having been arrested – the time when they are most receptive to changing their behaviour.

Clinical leads in hospitals across the capital have worked in partnership to provide opportunities for youth workers to speak confidentially to young people, giving them the support and guidance they need.

National funding will also be used for diversionary activities through sport and works alongside the Mayor’s record investment in prevention and early intervention, which is working to tackle school exclusions, mentoring and a commitment to fund a further 250,000 positive opportunities for young people.

The Mayor, the Director of the VRU, Lib Peck, and the Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime, Kaya Comer-Schwartz, were today joined by Diana Johnson MP, the Crime and Policing Minister, at a visit to the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel. It’s one of 12 hospitals delivering the youth work intervention programme. Since 2022, St Giles Trust youth workers have supported 550 young people who had been involved in violence, including knife injury, gunshots, or self-harm. Last year, interventions by youth workers resulted in 85 per cent of young people they engaged with no longer involved in gang activity, and led to an 83 per cent reduction in their risk of harm and involvement in violence.

Policing Minister, Dame Diana Johnson said: “Tackling violence and making our streets safer is at the heart of this government’s Plan for Change. We have already banned zombie-style knives, are fast progressing our ban on Ninja swords and are strengthening age-verification checks for buying knives online.

“But we cannot do this alone. One of the first things the Prime Minister did was launch the Coalition to tackle knife crime, which brings together different communities and voices to ensure our work will actually make a difference to young people.

“I am grateful to the London VRU and the Mayor of London for the vital work they already do, supporting vulnerable young lives in exceptionally difficult and complex circumstances, and today we have committed to a £9.4 million investment to ensure this continues.”

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “I am committed to tackling violence and building a safer London for everyone by being tough on crime and tough on its complex causes.

“Alongside record investment in policing, I set up and fund the Violence Reduction Unit as part of my commitment to prevention and investing in young Londoners.

“I welcome the Government’s investment and support so that we can continue delivering targeted interventions that we know are working to divert young people away from violence and towards opportunity.”

Lib Peck, Director of London’s Violence Reduction Unit, said: “We firmly believe that violence is preventable, not inevitable. But key to this is approach is the role that youth workers play in changing the lives of young people every day in London.

“Evidence now firmly shows that embedding youth workers in hospitals and custody suites has impact in cutting reoffending rates and offering young people a route away from violence.

“We are really pleased to secure the funding and backing we need to continue supporting the life-changing impact that youth workers have on young people to keep them save and able to thrive in our great city.”

Tracey Burley, Chief Executive of St Giles, said: “Collaborating with staff at The Royal London Hospital and Barts NHS Trust has been transformative. By integrating our lived experience approach to tackle violence, we seize a critical opportunity during hospital stays to positively impact young lives.

“We are deeply thankful to the London VRU, Royal London Hospital and Barts NHS Trust for partnering with us and sharing our belief in the power of first-hand experience to drive meaningful change to young people’s lives and wider communities.”
MIL OSI United Kingdom –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Influence on Healthcare Market Expected to Generate Revenues of $610 Billion By 2034

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

PALM BEACH, Fla., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — FN Media Group News Commentary – The growing adoption of the digital technologies in the healthcare sector owing to the growing need for reducing the healthcare costs and offer enhanced quality patient care services to the patients are the prominent factors that are boosting the growth of the global artificial intelligence in healthcare market. The surging prevalence of various chronic diseases and growing elderly population is resulting in the increased pool of patients at hospitals. The large volume of patient health data is generated every day, which is required to be stored and managed effectively. The growing demand for the personalized medicines and the necessity of maintaining digital health records are significantly driving the artificial intelligence in healthcare market. The novel technologies like artificial intelligence and machine learning are now being integrated to the healthcare systems that will allow the health professionals in early identification of the diseases and offer enhanced care services to the patients. Moreover, the data analytics, deep learning technology, natural language processing (NPL), predictive analytics, and content analytics are supporting the healthcare professionals in early diagnosis and care services. A report from Precedence Research said that the global artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare market size accounted for USD 26.69 billion in 2024 and is predicted to reach around USD 613.81 billion by 2034, growing at a CAGR of 36.83% from 2024 to 2034. North America AI in healthcare market size reached USD 8.67 billion in 2023. Active A.I. companies active in the markets include: Avant Technologies Inc. (OTCQB: AVAI), Tempus AI, Inc. (NASDAQ: TEM), BigBear.ai (NYSE: BBAI), Talkspace (NASDAQ: TALK), SoundHound AI, Inc. (NASDAQ: SOUN).

The Precedence Research report added: “North America region was the highest market share holder in (recent years). North America is characterized by the increased inclination towards the advanced and latest digital technologies. The strong and developed healthcare, IT, and telecommunications infrastructure in North America has supported the growth of the artificial intelligence in healthcare market. Furthermore, the favorable government policies that encourage the adoption of the digital and novel technologies like artificial intelligence in the healthcare sector. North America has the presence of huge pool of patients. It is estimated that over half of the US population is suffering from one or more chronic diseases. This is resulting in increased volume of patients in hospitals. The health data of these patients needs to be stored and managed in digital form as per the government regulations. This is a major factor that propels the demand for the artificial intelligence in healthcare sector.”

Avant Technologies, Inc. (OTCQB: AVAI) and Ainnova Advance Toward FDA Clinical Trial with Selection of Top CRO – Avant Technologies, Inc. (“Avant” or the “Company”) and its partner, Ainnova Tech, Inc., (Ainnova), a leading healthcare technology company focused on revolutionizing early disease detection using artificial intelligence (AI), today announced the selection of Fortrea, a global provider of clinical development solutions to the life sciences industry, as the contract research organization (CRO) to conduct Ainnova’s upcoming clinical studies to seek approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for Ainnova’s Vision AI platform.

Fortrea will assist Ainnova in requesting a pre-submission meeting with the FDA for guidance on the clinical testing needed for its Vision AI platform in the early detection of diabetic retinopathy. After a pre-submission meeting, Fortrea will then work with Ainnova on its FDA submission and a subsequent clinical study before concluding with an FDA 510(k) submission to obtain clearance from the FDA to market its Vision AI platform.

The upcoming clinical studies are significant to Avant and its shareholders because of the partnership formed by Avant and Ainnova to advance and commercialize Ainnova’s technology portfolio, including its Vision AI platform and its versatile retinal cameras. The joint venture formed by the two companies, Ai-nova Acquisition Corp. (AAC), has the licensing rights for this portfolio in the U.S., Canada, and Europe, so the success of Ainnova’s clinical studies with the FDA will be vital to marketing the technology portfolio in the United States.

Ainnova’s Chief Executive Officer, Vinicio Vargas, said of the selection, “We worked diligently to identify and select the right CRO to help us both engage the FDA and then conduct our clinical studies. Fortrea is an established and highly regarded full-service CRO with expertise in more than 20 therapeutic areas, and a CRO with an extensive portfolio of successfully completed clinical trials, including those involving both emerging and large biopharmaceutical, medical device, and diagnostic companies.”

With Fortrea’s guidance, Ainnova expects to submit its pre-submission application in the coming weeks and expects to meet with the FDA for its pre-submission meeting in late March/early April 2025. Additionally, Ainnova will also interact with the FDA to devise a plan to obtain clearance for four algorithms it recently acquired the exclusive licensing rights to, which include early detection for cardiovascular risk, prediabetes and Type 2 diabetes, fatty liver disease, and chronic kidney disease. CONTINUED… Read this and more news for Avant Technologies at: https://www.financialnewsmedia.com/news-avai/

In other A.I. developments and happenings in the market recently include:

Tempus AI, Inc. (NASDAQ: TEM), a technology company leading the adoption of AI to advance precision medicine and patient care, recently announced it has completed its acquisition of Ambry Genetics, a recognized leader in genetic testing that aims to improve health by understanding the relationship between genetics and disease.

“This acquisition complements our strategy of leveraging diagnostics and data to drive innovation, further strengthening our ability to deliver cutting-edge solutions to clinicians, patients, and life sciences companies,” said Eric Lefkofsky, Founder and CEO of Tempus. “We are excited to welcome Ambry to the Tempus team as we work together to improve patient outcomes and transform treatment journeys through the power of technology.”

BigBear.ai (NYSE: BBAI) has recently been awarded a contract by the Department of Defense (DoD) Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) to advance BigBear.ai’s Virtual Anticipation Network (VANE) prototype. This initiative will support the CDAO and Office of the Secretary of Defense (OSD) by leveraging custom AI models to better assess news media originating in countries that are potential foreign adversaries.

The prototype award is designed to improve CDAO’s ability to identify key trends and topics related to potential foreign adversarial areas of interest, enabling faster and more informed assessments of media data vital to national security. VANE was created to contrive clarity in multi-domain environments for military and government applications by aggregating and analyzing vast data points, enabling predictions of adversarial activity in complex situations.

“We are honored to continue our support in the modernization of our nation’s defense efforts. This award underscores the importance of leveraging cutting-edge AI technologies to address complicated geopolitical challenges,” said Ryan Legge, President of National Security at BigBear.ai. “By advancing VANE within CDAO, we are arming our warfighters with sophisticated intelligence capabilities to leverage foreign insights critical to the safety of our Nation and those protecting it.”

Talkspace (NASDAQ: TALK) recently announced the launch of Insights, a new feature that enhances therapeutic care by helping Talkspace providers efficiently prepare for sessions and guide client care between sessions. The feature was developed and refined in partnership with Talkspace clinicians.

Before each session, providers can use Insights to synthesize data from each client’s care journey, a process that is typically manual — including changes in that client’s symptom acuity from evidence-based psychological assessments and key details from the most recent session — to generate a concise pre-session primer tailored to the therapist’s upcoming appointment. After the session, an update can be generated to reflect the discussion’s key points, highlight therapeutic progress, and note follow-ups for future sessions.

SoundHound AI, Inc. (NASDAQ: SOUN), a global leader in voice artificial intelligence, recently announced the launch of Brand Personalities, a groundbreaking feature for its SoundHound Chat AI Automotive voice assistant – making it the first in-vehicle assistant to offer distinct, customizable personas tailored to each automaker’s unique brand identity, designed to enhance both the user experience and brand loyalty for OEMs.

Brand Personalities enables car makers to control the entire personality of their voice assistant including response style, character and vivaciousness. Automotive partners can choose from pre-designed personas, create fully customized personalities tailored to their specific needs, or even introduce seasonal characters for campaigns. Due to SoundHound’s unique software architecture, multiple personas can be defined for specific sub-brands or model lines—allowing sports cars, family cars, and commercial vehicles to each have distinct personalities that reflect the unique needs of their customers.

About FN Media Group:
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DISCLAIMER: FN Media Group LLC (FNM), which owns and operates FinancialNewsMedia.com and MarketNewsUpdates.com, is a third party publisher and news dissemination service provider, which disseminates electronic information through multiple online media channels. FNM is NOT affiliated in any manner with any company mentioned herein. FNM and its affiliated companies are a news dissemination solutions provider and are NOT a registered broker/dealer/analyst/adviser, holds no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security. FNM’s market updates, news alerts and corporate profiles are NOT a solicitation or recommendation to buy, sell or hold securities. The material in this release is intended to be strictly informational and is NEVER to be construed or interpreted as research material. All readers are strongly urged to perform research and due diligence on their own and consult a licensed financial professional before considering any level of investing in stocks. All material included herein is republished content and details which were previously disseminated by the companies mentioned in this release. FNM is not liable for any investment decisions by its readers or subscribers. Investors are cautioned that they may lose all or a portion of their investment when investing in stocks. For current services performed FNM was compensated forty nine hundred dollars for news coverage of the current press releases issued by Avant Technologies, Inc. by a non-affiliated third party. FNM HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. “Forward-looking statements” describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as “may”, “future”, “plan” or “planned”, “will” or “should”, “expected,” “anticipates”, “draft”, “eventually” or “projected”. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company’s annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and FNM undertakes no obligation to update such statements.

Contact Information:
Media Contact email: editor@financialnewsmedia.com – +1(561)325-8757

SOURCE: FN Media Group

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Primech AI Signs Three Pilot Program Agreements with Leading Singapore Cleaning Companies for HYTRON Cleaning Robot

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

SINGAPORE, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Primech AI Pte. Ltd. (“Primech AI”), a subsidiary of Primech Holdings Limited (Nasdaq: PMEC), proudly announces the signing of three important pilot program agreements for its groundbreaking HYTRON AI-powered cleaning robots. These agreements with established Singapore-based cleaning companies, including a leading provider of facilities and industrial services operating across Singapore, China, and Malaysia, represent a major expansion of Primech AI’s market presence and a solid vote of confidence in its advanced AI technology.

These agreements involve deploying HYTRON units across various sectors, showcasing the versatility and efficiency of these AI-powered cleaning solutions. The HYTRON units are powered by NVIDIA Jetson Orin Super, a state-of-the-art System-on-Module (SoM) designed for robust edge AI and robotics applications robots that will enhance hygiene standards and operational efficacy at several key facilities, reflecting growing industry confidence in robotic automation.

At the core of HYTRON’s navigation capabilities is a multi-sensor system consisting of (1) LIDAR for Mapping and Navigation, which enhances both precision and safety; (2) Ultrasonic Sensors for Proximity Detection to identify nearby objects and adjust its path accordingly, ensuring seamless movement through cluttered spaces without colliding with furniture or other obstacles; and (3) AI-powered Camera Sensors for Object Identification to recognize and classify bathroom objects, such as sinks, toilets, and mirrors. This ensures it applies the appropriate cleaning technique to each surface, enhancing its efficiency in commercial restroom cleaning.

Under the two-year pilot program agreements, these prominent cleaning companies will integrate HYTRON robots into their daily facility operations. This reflects the sector’s readiness to embrace innovative cleaning solutions that promise to revolutionize facility management through enhanced efficiency and reduced costs. This deployment is set to showcase the substantial benefits of integrating AI-powered automation into traditional cleaning processes.

Each pilot program agreement includes full support from Primech AI’s customer service framework, ensuring that HYTRON operates at peak efficiency and reliability. In addition, Primech AI will conduct staff training for the companies to ensure the effective operation and maintenance of the robots.

“Our three new esteemed partners for these pilot programs have a combined 75 years of facilities service and have worked on nearly 1,000 different commercial cleaning projects. Securing these leases is a strong endorsement of HYTRON’s capabilities and our Company’s direction,” stated Charles Ng, Chief Operating Officer of Primech AI. “We believe HYTRON is the future of cleaning and look forward to sharing updates with our shareholders about our continued development as the facility management industry reflects a continued shift and acceptance of robotic solutions.”

About Primech Holdings Limited
Headquartered in Singapore, Primech Holdings Limited is a leading provider of comprehensive technology-driven facilities services, predominantly serving both public and private sectors throughout Singapore. Primech Holdings offers an extensive range of services tailored to meet the complex demands of its diverse clientele. Services include advanced general facility maintenance services, specialized cleaning solutions such as marble polishing and facade cleaning, meticulous stewarding services, and targeted cleaning services for offices and homes. Known for its commitment to sustainability and cutting-edge technology, Primech Holdings integrates eco-friendly practices and smart technology solutions to enhance operational efficiency and client satisfaction. This strategic approach positions Primech Holdings as a leader in the industry and a proactive contributor to advancing industry standards and practices in Singapore and beyond. For more information, visit www.primechholdings.com.

About Primech AI
Primech AI is a leading robotics company dedicated to pushing the boundaries of innovation in technology. With a team of passionate individuals and a commitment to collaboration, Primech AI is poised to revolutionize the robotics industry with groundbreaking solutions that make a meaningful impact on society. For more information, visit www.primech.ai.

Forward-Looking Statements
Certain statements in this announcement are forward-looking statements, including, for example, statements about completing the acquisition, anticipated revenues, growth, and expansion. These forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties and are based on the Company’s current expectations and projections about future events that the Company believes may affect its financial condition, results of operations, business strategy, and financial needs. These forward-looking statements are also based on assumptions regarding the Company’s present and future business strategies and the environment in which the Company will operate in the future. Investors can find many (but not all) of these statements by the use of words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “aim,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “believe,” “likely to” or other similar expressions. The Company undertakes no obligation to update or revise publicly any forward-looking statements to reflect subsequent occurring events or circumstances or changes in its expectations, except as may be required by law. Although the Company believes that the expectations expressed in these forward-looking statements are reasonable, it cannot assure that such expectations will be correct. The Company cautions investors that actual results may differ materially from the anticipated results and encourages investors to review other factors that may affect its future results in the Company’s registration statement and other filings with the SEC.

Company Contact:
Email: ir@primech.com.sg

Investor Relations Contact:
Matthew Abenante, IRC
President
Strategic Investor Relations, LLC
Tel: 347-947-2093
Email: matthew@strategic-ir.com

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: New Forests adopts Intapp DealCloud to bolster capital raising

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

PALO ALTO, Calif., Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Intapp (NASDAQ: INTA), a leading global provider of AI-powered solutions for professionals at advisory, capital markets, and legal firms, announces that New Forests has implemented Intapp DealCloud to modernize its investor relations and fundraising functions. New Forests is a global investment manager of nature-based real assets and natural capital strategies with teams spanning the United States, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Australia. The firm manages a diversified portfolio of sustainable timber plantations and conservation areas, carbon and conservation finance projects, agriculture, timber processing, and infrastructure.

Leading strategic change
“With Intapp DealCloud, we are able to keep better track of our investors, and the entire fundraising process, to ensure we’re offering investors and prospective investors a more targeted and tailored approach to relationship management,” said Sarah Clawson, Global Head of Investor Relations at New Forests. “The AI capabilities within DealCloud will help streamline reporting, investor outreach, and follow ups.”

Modernizing investor relations
DealCloud provides New Forests’ investor relations teams with the insight they need to make important decisions and build long-term relationships with investors. It is a data-powered platform built for capital markets firms that centralizes critical proprietary and third-party data. Access to real-time data and analytics helps New Forests’ IR professionals cultivate existing and prospective investor relationships, build pipeline, organize investor events, and tailor thought leadership content.

Using Applied AI, DealCloud furthers the modernization of investor relations processes through every stage of the process. With AI assistance, IR professionals can analyze data quickly and accurately, and make more informed decisions based on real-time insights, market trends, and existing firm knowledge. DealCloud’s AI capabilities also help automate everyday workflows, identify and communicate with potential new investors, and ensure investor and fundraising activity is recorded for future reference.

Multiplying success with Intapp
“We’re excited to work with New Forests, a leading investment manager across Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, Africa and the United States,” said Rudy Saad, Global Head of Private Equity and Private Capital Markets at Intapp. “With Intapp DealCloud, their IR professionals are empowered with greater visibility into key investor interactions, more targeted business development campaigns, and ultimately better management of capital raising initiatives while automating more manual processes.”

About Intapp
Intapp software helps professionals unlock their teams’ knowledge, relationships, and operational insights to increase value for their firms. Using the power of Applied AI, we make firm and market intelligence easy to find, understand, and use. With Intapp’s portfolio of vertical SaaS solutions, professionals can apply their collective expertise to make smarter decisions, manage risk, and increase competitive advantage. The world’s top firms — across accounting, consulting, investment banking, legal, private capital, and real assets — trust Intapp’s industry-specific platform and solutions to modernize and drive new growth. For more information, visit intapp.com and LinkedIn.

About New Forests
New Forests is a global investment manager of nature-based real assets and natural capital strategies, with A$11.6 billion in assets under management across more than 4.2 million hectares of investments. We manage a diversified portfolio of sustainable timber plantations and conservation areas, carbon and conservation finance projects, agriculture, timber processing and infrastructure. We aim to generate shared prosperity for our clients and the communities in which we operate and accelerate the transition to a sustainable future (as at 30 June 2024).

Headquartered in Sydney, New Forests is a Certified B Corp and operates in Australia, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, Africa and the United States. www.newforests.com.

Intapp
Ali Robinson
Global Media Relations Director, Intapp
press@intapp.com

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Most Popular Cruise Ports, Published by Travel Planning App, Visited
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TORONTO, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Visited app, a travel list app published by Arriving In High Heels Corporation, announces the publication of its Top 25 Most Visited cruise ports list, based on international travelers cruising. The app was developed to keep track of all countries visited, it has later expanded to include US states that users have been to and destinations and experiences while abroad. With over 175 travel lists to choose from, including famous ports, users can select places and activities that they have done or wish to do. By building their ultimate bucket list, they are able to plan their future trip with itinerary feature.

The top visited cruise ports list is based on over 2.45 international travelers, with the full list available in the app on iOS or Android stores. “It is not surprising that 5 cruise ports out of 25, are found in United States, as a lot of cruises heading to Caribbean and Latin America originate there. What is surprising is that Barcelona continues to top the list as the most visited cruise port,” said Anna Kayfitz, CEO of Arriving In High Heels.

For those that love Cruising, here are the top 10 most popular cruise ports as per Visited’s users:
1. Barcelona, Spain
2. Venice, Italy
3. Miami, USA
4. London, UK
5. Amsterdam, Netherlands
6. New York, USA
7. Naples, Italy
8. Lisbon, Portugal
9. Copenhagen, Denmark
10. Cozumel, Mexico
To see the full list of popular cruise ports in United States and abroad, download the Visited app on iOS or Android.

About Visited Travel App

Visited is the ultimate travel bucket list app, is the app for those that love to travel both internationally and domestically. Some features of the app includes:
- Personalized map which an be looked at as by country, region or city
- Over 175 Travel lists, where users can select where they have been or want to go and what they like or want to do. Travel categories include places such as art museums, US National Parks or activities such as golf destinations, culinary experiences and wine regions.
- You can print your personal travel poster, which is a 16x20in country map with been, want and live colors.
- Trip itinerary feature lets you see the number of places and experiences you wish to visit and do by country. The rank helps decide where to next.
- Personal travel stats let’s you see how many countries you visited, what percentage of the world or country you have seen as well as they type of traveler you are.
The travel app is available in 30 languages and is available on iOS or Android and free to download.

To learn more about the Visited app and its latest feature update, please visit https://visitedapp.com/.

About Arriving In High Heels Corporation
Arriving In High Heels Corporation is a mobile app company with apps including Pay Off Debt, X-Walk and Visited, their most popular app. Visited Media publishes annual travel report, and provides customized travel research.

Contact:
Anna Kayfitz
anna@arrivinginhighheels.com

The MIL Network –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Hivello Token ($HVLO) now Live
Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

TORONTO, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Blockmate Ventures Inc (TSX.V: MATE) (OTCQB: MATEF) (FSE: 8MH1) (“Blockmate” or the “Company”) is pleased to announce that its majority-owned subsidiary, Hivello Holdings Ltd, has had its $HVLO token commence trading on leading exchanges, Gate.io and MEXC.

$HVLO’s token listing should unlock greater passive income functionality for its users and attract new ones. Ultimately, the token will enable more users to participate in blockchain mining, earn rewards, and leverage the token’s utility across the growing DePIN ecosystem.

This milestone marks a significant step in Hivello’s mission to revolutionize the Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks (DePIN) space by enabling seamless participation in decentralized computing. By connecting unused computing resources to decentralized networks, Hivello users can earn rewards while strengthening the DePIN ecosystem.

With over fifteen thousand nodes already active in its beta application, Hivello is leading the DePIN aggregation space. The platform’s plug-and-play mining model removes the complexity of blockchain mining, making it accessible to both novice and experienced users.

Blockmate has not directly issued any tokens or received any proceeds from the token listing. The tokens are issued by the Swiss-based HVLO Association, under licence from Hivello Holdings Ltd.

Below is the press release from Hivello:

Hivello’s $HVLO Token Live on Gate.io and MEXC exchanges

London & Amsterdam, 11th February 2025 – Hivello, a DePIN aggregator that enables users to earn by monetising idle computer resources across multiple decentralised networks, has announced their Token Generation Event (TGE) is live, and the $HVLO token is officially trading. This marks a significant milestone in Hivello’s mission to redefine- and expand the DePIN (Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks) ecosystem.

Key Dates and times:
- Gate.io – 11 February 2025, 10 AM UTC
- MEXC – 11 February 2025, 10 AM UTC
- Raydium.io (Solana DEX) – 12 February 2025, 11AM UTC
The company requests that interested individuals visit Hivello’s official website www.hivello.com for all the latest information, including the Contract Address (CA) for the smart contract.

The $HVLO token is important in Hivello’s ecosystem, incentivizing users to contribute compute, storage, and networking resources to DePIN protocols. By listing on Gate.io and MEXC, two of the industry’s leading centralized exchanges, and Raydium, the largest decentralized exchange (DEX) on Solana, Hivello is ensuring deep liquidity and accessibility for a wide range of users.

Now that $HVLO is live on multiple exchanges, multiple benefits exist:
- Stake $HVLO via www.hivello.com for an APY of 88%.
- Expanding accessibility and benefits of $HVLO, enabling more users to participate in decentralized compute mining, earn rewards, and leverage the token’s utility across the growing DePIN ecosystem.
- Enhancing staking and governance functionalities for $HVLO holders, ensuring long-term engagement and sustainability.
- Expanding partnerships with DePIN protocols and AI compute networks, driving broader adoption of decentralized infrastructure.
- Scaling its network of decentralized node operators, making it easier for users worldwide to contribute to DePIN.
Hivello will be running an X Space event for people to tune in, details below:

For the latest updates on staking, rewards, and DePIN integrations, users are encouraged to follow Hivello’s official channels:

Domenic Carosa, Co-Founder & Chairman of Hivello, stated:

“Launching $HVLO and listing it on Gate.io, MEXC, and Raydium is a major achievement for Hivello and our growing community. These listings provide global accessibility, allowing more users to engage with decentralized compute and earn rewards through DePIN.”

About Gate.io

Founded in 2013, Gate.io is one of the top 5 cryptocurrency exchanges globally by real trading volume, providing secure, reliable, transparent, and authentic digital asset trading services to over 20 million users. For more information, visit www.gate.io.

About MEXC
Established in 2018, MEXC serves more than 30 million users in more than 170 countries. MEXC has an extensive range of popular tokens and airdrop options. Their platform provides safe and effective access to digital assets, catering to both novice traders and seasoned investors. MEXC places an emphasis on innovation and simplicity, which increases the accessibility and profitability of token trading.

About Hivello
Hivello is a DePIN aggregator that enables users to earn by monetising idle computer resources across multiple decentralised networks. The Swiss-based HVLO Association will issue the $HVLO token under license from Hivello Holdings Ltd.
For more information about Hivello and to stay updated on its developments, visit www.hivello.com

About Blockmate Ventures Inc.
Blockmate Ventures is a venture creator focussing on building fast-growing technology businesses relating to cutting-edge sectors such as blockchain, AI and renewable energy. Working with prospective founders, projects in incubation can benefit from the Blockmate ecosystem that offers tech, services, integrations and advice to accelerate the incubation of projects towards monetization. Recent projects include Hivello (download the free passive income app at www.hivello.com) and Sunified, digitising solar energy.

The leadership team at Blockmate Ventures have successfully founded successful tech companies from the Dotcom era through to the social media era. Learn more about being a Blockmate at: www.blockmate.com.

Blockmate welcomes investors to join the Company’s mailing list for the latest updates and industry research by subscribing at https://www.blockmate.com/subscribe.

ON BEHALF OF THE BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Justin Rosenberg, CEO
Blockmate Ventures Inc
justin@blockmate.com
(+1-580-262-6130)

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in policies of the TSX Venture Exchange) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release

Forward-Looking Information
This news release contains “forward-looking statements” or “forward-looking information” (collectively, “forward-looking statements”) within the meaning of applicable securities legislation. All statements, other than statements of historical fact, are forward-looking statements and are based on the assumptions, expectations, estimates and projections as of the date of this news release. Forward-looking statements are subject to a variety of known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ from those expressed or implied by forward-looking statements contained herein. There can be no assurance that such statements will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Raindrop disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether because of new information, future events or otherwise, except as may be required by applicable securities laws. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements.

The MIL Network –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: The New Yorker turns 100 − how a poker game pipe dream became a publishing powerhouse

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Christopher B. Daly, Professor Emeritus of Journalism, Boston University

The New Yorker expanded the scope of journalism far beyond the standard categories of crime, courts, politics and sports. Design Uncensored

Literate in tone, far-reaching in scope, and witty to its bones, The New Yorker brought a new – and much-needed – sophistication to American journalism when it launched 100 years ago this month.

As I researched the history of U.S. journalism for my book “Covering America,” I became fascinated by the magazine’s origin story and the story of its founder, Harold Ross.

In a business full of characters, Ross fit right in. He never graduated from high school. With a gap-toothed smile and bristle-brush hair, he was frequently divorced and plagued by ulcers.

Ross devoted his adult life to one cause: The New Yorker magazine.

For the literati, by the literati

Born in 1892 in Aspen, Colorado, Ross worked out west as a reporter while still a teenager. When the U.S. entered World War I, Ross enlisted. He was sent to southern France, where he quickly deserted from his Army regiment and made his way to Paris, carrying his portable Corona typewriter. He joined up with the brand-new newspaper for soldiers, Stars and Stripes, which was so desperate for anybody with training that Ross was taken on with no questions asked, even though the paper was an official Army operation.

Harold Ross and Jane Grant in 1926.
University of Oregon Libraries

In Paris, Ross met a number of writers, including Jane Grant, who had been the first woman to work as a news reporter at The New York Times. She eventually became the first of Ross’ three wives.

After the armistice, Ross headed to New York City and never really left. There, he started meeting other writers, and he soon joined a clique of critics, dramatists and wits who gathered at the Round Table in the Algonquin Hotel on West 44th Street in Manhattan.

Over long and liquid lunches, Ross rubbed shoulders and wisecracked with some of the brightest lights in New York’s literary chandelier. The Round Table also spawned a floating poker game that involved Ross and his eventual financial backer, Raoul Fleischmann, of the famous yeast-making family.

In the mid-1920s, Ross decided to launch a weekly metropolitan magazine. He could see that the magazine business was booming, but he had no intention of copying anything that already existed. He wanted to publish a magazine that spoke directly to him and his friends – young city dwellers who’d spent time in Europe and were bored by the platitudes and predictable features found in most American periodicals.

First, though, Ross had to come up with a business plan.

The kind of smart-set readers Ross wanted were also desirable to Manhattan’s high-end retailers, so they got on board and expressed interest in buying ads. On that basis, Ross’ poker partner Fleischmann was willing to stake him US$25,000 to start – roughly $450,000 in today’s dollars.

Ross goes all in

In the fall of 1924, using an office owned by Fleischmann’s family at 25 West 45th St., Ross got to work on the prospectus for his magazine:

“The New Yorker will be a reflection in word and picture of metropolitan life. It will be human. Its general tenor will be one of gaiety, wit and satire, but it will be more than a jester. It will not be what is commonly called radical or highbrow. It will be what is commonly called sophisticated, in that it will assume a reasonable degree of enlightenment on the part of its readers. It will hate bunk.”

The magazine, he famously added, “is not edited for the old lady in Dubuque.”

In other words, The New Yorker was not going to respond to the news cycle, and it was not going to pander to middle America.

Ross’ only criterion would be whether a story was interesting – with Ross the arbiter of what counted as interesting. He was putting all his chips on the long-shot idea that there were enough people who shared his interests – or could discover that they did – to support a glossy, cheeky, witty weekly.

Ross almost failed. The cover of the first issue of The New Yorker, dated Feb. 21, 1925, carried no portraits of potentates or tycoons, no headlines, no come-ons.

Instead, it featured a watercolor by Ross’ artist friend Rea Irvin of a dandified figure staring intently through a monocle at – of all things! – a butterfly. That image, nicknamed Eustace Tilly, became the magazine’s unoffical emblem.

A magazine finds its footing

Inside that first edition, a reader would find a buffet of jokes and short poems. There was a profile, reviews of plays and books, lots of gossip, and a few ads.

It was not terribly impressive, feeling quite patched together, and at first the magazine struggled. When The New Yorker was just a few months old, Ross almost even lost it entirely one night in a drunken poker game at the home of Pulitzer Prize winner and Round Table regular Herbert Bayard Swope. Ross didn’t make it home until noon the next day, and when he woke, his wife found IOUs in his pockets amounting to nearly $30,000.

Fleischmann, who had been at the card game but left at a decent hour, was furious. Somehow, Ross persuaded Fleischmann to pay off some of his debt and let Ross work off the rest. Just in time, The New Yorker began gaining readers, and more advertisers soon followed. Ross eventually settled up with his financial angel.

A big part of the magazine’s success was Ross’ genius for spotting talent and encouraging them to develop their own voices. One of the founding editor’s key early finds was Katharine S. Angell, who became the magazine’s first fiction editor and a reliable reservoir of good sense. In 1926, Ross brought James Thurber and E.B. White aboard, and they performed a variety of chores: writing “casuals,” which were short satirical essays, cartooning, creating captions for others’ drawings, reporting Talk of the Town pieces and offering commentary.

E.B. White in his office at The New Yorker.
Bettmann/Getty Images

As The New Yorker found its footing, the writers and editors began perfecting some of its trademark features: the deep profile, ideally written about someone who was not strictly in the news but who deserved to be better known; long, deeply reported, nonfiction narratives; short stories and poetry; and, of course, the single-panel cartoons and the humor sketches.

Intensely curious and obsessively correct in matters grammatical, Ross would go to any length to ensure accuracy. Writers got their drafts back from Ross covered in penciled queries demanding dates, sources and endless fact-checking. One trademark Ross query was “Who he?”

During the 1930s, while the country was suffering through a relentless economic depression, The New Yorker was sometimes faulted for blithely ignoring the seriousness of the nation’s problems. In the pages of The New Yorker, life was almost always amusing, attractive and fun.

The New Yorker really came into its own, both financially and editorially, during World War II. It finally found its voice, one that was curious, international, searching and, ultimately, quite serious.

Ross also discovered still more writers, such as A.J. Liebling, Mollie Panter-Downes and John Hersey, who was raided from Henry Luce’s Time magazine. Together, they produced some of the best writing of the war, most notably Hersey’s landmark reporting on the use of the first atomic bomb in warfare.

A crown jewel of journalism

Over the past century, The New Yorker had a profound impact on American journalism.

For one thing, Ross created conditions for distinctive voices to be heard. For another, The New Yorker provided encouragement and an outlet for nonacademic authority to flourish; it was a place where all those serious amateurs could write about the Dead Sea Scrolls or geology or medicine or nuclear war with no credentials other than their own ability to observe closely, think clearly and put together a good sentence.

Finally, Ross must be credited with expanding the scope of journalism far beyond standard categories of crime and courts, politics and sports. In the pages of The New Yorker, readers almost never found the same content that they’d come across in other newspapers and magazines.

Instead, readers of The New Yorker might find just about anything else.

Christopher B. Daly does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. The New Yorker turns 100 − how a poker game pipe dream became a publishing powerhouse – https://theconversation.com/the-new-yorker-turns-100-how-a-poker-game-pipe-dream-became-a-publishing-powerhouse-246774

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Whether Christians should prioritize care for migrants as much as for fellow citizens has been debated for centuries

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Laura E. Alexander, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, University of Nebraska Omaha

Vice President JD Vance has criticized the U.S. Catholic bishops condemning agents of Immigration and Customs Enforcement entering churches and schools. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images

Vice President JD Vance and several bishops of the U.S. Roman Catholic Church are having a war of words over the Trump administration’s flurry of executive orders and highly publicized immigration raids. The bishops argue that these policies tend to empower gangs and traffickers while harming vulnerable families; Vance has criticized the bishops’ stance and argued that crackdowns are a matter of public safety.

In the wake of President Donald Trump’s executive orders, both Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Bishop Mark Seitz, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Migration, publicly objected to the tone and the humanitarian impacts of the orders.

Seitz critiqued generalizations that denigrate and describe migrants without legal status as “criminals” or “invaders,” saying this “is an affront to God, who has created each of us in his own image.” Instead, he urged humane policies and bipartisan immigration reform for an “effective, orderly immigration system.”

Interviewed on “Face the Nation,” Vance argued that the USCCB should “look in the mirror … and recognize that when they receive over US$100 million to help resettle illegal immigrants, are they worried about humanitarian concerns? Or are they actually worried about their bottom line?”

To be clear, this line of attack appears to be false. USCCB contracts with the U.S. State Department to resettle refugees and has received over $100 million in recent years to do so, but refugee resettlement is a legal immigration program. The Catholic Church, rather than making money on this program, provides funding from its own budget to supplement its humanitarian work with refugees. For example, according to the USCCB’s audited financial statements, in 2023, the most recent year reported, the USCCB spent over $134.2 million on resettlement services. Federal grants provided over $129.6 million for these services, with the USCCB covering the rest.

As a scholar of religion and migration, I see in this debate long-standing tensions among Catholic – and other Christian – thinkers and practitioners about moral obligations to people with whom we have closer versus more distant relationships.

This tension is magnified in the case of migrants without legal status, since most of these migrants do have close relationships with U.S. communities and citizens, but they are not legally authorized by the U.S. government.

2 perspectives on moral responsibility

In international relations, different stances on how to treat people who are not citizens of one’s own state are described as “cosmopolitan” and “communitarian,” respectively.

Some Christian thinkers have adopted these terms as a helpful way to understand Christian ethical debates over how to prioritize caring for people who are more closely connected or less connected to us. Those who take a cosmopolitan stance argue that Christians should care equally about all people of the world and should not show preference to family members or those within their near orbit, even if, for practical reasons, they do assist those close to them more often.

Meanwhile, thinkers who take a communitarian stance argue that Christians certainly should care about the well-being of all but have a moral obligation to prefer helping people they have a closer relationship with, such as family members, those who are close geographically and possibly fellow citizens.

Christian theologies of neighborly love

Many Christian thinkers have developed perspectives on how to prioritize care for different neighbors by interpreting the words and actions of Jesus, as well as the teachings and practices of the early Christian church. Over time, Christian thinkers have also considered institutional statements and traditional teachings of different church bodies.

Early theologians, including Clement of Rome, the first-century bishop of Rome, and John Chrysostom, archbishop of Constantinople in the fourth and fifth centuries, demonstrated cosmopolitan tendencies.

Biblical passages encourage believers to welcome strangers.
‘Sermon on the Mount’ by Henrik Olrik via Wikimedia Commons

These early church leaders consider biblical passages, including commandments in the Hebrew Bible, to welcome strangers. In the Gospels of the New Testament, Jesus’ parable of the Good Samaritan upholds a person of different ethnicity and religion from Jesus and his followers as an ideal “neighbor.” It also praises acts of kindness across ethnic and religious boundaries.

In another passage, Jesus heals the daughter of a woman who was both non-Jewish and of foreign ethnicity, accepting her chastisement for his initial reluctance to assist a non-Jew.

Later in the New Testament, the apostle Paul used expansive language for the Christian community, particularly in Galatians, the ninth book of the New Testament: “There is no longer Jew or Greek; there is no longer slave or free; there is no longer male and female, for all of you are one in Christ Jesus.”

The contemporary Roman Catholic Church has often taken a cosmopolitan perspective on social issues. Pope Francis, in his message for the 2024 World Day of Migrants and Refugees, highlights the biblical passage that “our citizenship is in heaven” and states that “the encounter with the migrant … ‘is also an encounter with Christ.’”

Catholic service organizations draw on this thinking when they help migrants in concrete ways. In addition to refugee resettlement services, many Catholic organizations provide humanitarian assistance such as food and shelter to migrants, no matter where they are from.

Christian communitarian thought

From a communitarian perspective, some thinkers argue that Christians’ concrete obligations to members of their communities can differ from their obligations to others, even though they view all people as of equal moral worth.

New Testament writings describe how members of early Christian groups provided food and care for those in their communities – even as they also gave charity to the poor in the wider society.

St. Thomas Aquinas, whose writings have also become part of the current debate after Vance referenced them online, argues that Christians should assist people in need, even to the point of depriving themselves of luxuries or social standing. He consistently urges Christians to love all people as commanded by God. Yet he also writes that, all other things being equal, Christians can properly meet the needs of people close to them before they give to those outside their own family or close circles, and that in political matters there can be some justification for preferring fellow citizens.

Some contemporary Christian thinkers apply similar ideas to relationships between citizens and noncitizens in modern states. Ethicist Mark Amstutz argues that American Christian churches should incorporate a stronger focus on citizens’ needs and solidarity within state communities into their statements on immigration. German Catholic thinker Manfred Spieker has advocated that Christian social teachings permit preferences for people one is close to, as well as requirements of cultural integration by immigrants.

These proponents of Christian communitarian perspectives continue to stress that all neighbors should be treated well even if some are prioritized over others. In this way, Vance’s remarks are not the best example of Christian communitarian thought, since migrants without legal status still should not be demonized nor falsely accused of criminal behavior, both of which Vance himself has done in the past few months.

Immigrants in communities and the command to love

Christian thinkers do agree that Christians are commanded by God to show love for all people – those who are like them, those who are not like them and even enemies.

But it’s possible that love could take different shapes in different relationships. Immigration poses a unique test case because immigrants are not citizens, but they are “close” neighbors to U.S. citizens.

Immigrants, including undocumented immigrants, are integral parts of the communities where they live. They work in vital jobs; in 2020-22, 42% of hired farmworkers were migrants without legal status. Immigrants, both with legal status and without, have brought new workers and young families to small towns whose populations have declined in recent decades.

This further nuances debates about cosmopolitan and communitarian moral perspectives, since immigrants arrive from places outside the U.S. but have close relationships with U.S. citizens, whether as family members or as neighbors with whom they work, shop and worship.

At the moment, public debate over immigration reflects trends in U.S. politics as much or more than it does Christian ethics. Yet Christian communities do continue to wrestle with cosmopolitan and communitarian ways of thinking, as they try to understand and apply Christian scriptural and moral commands to care for all people.

Laura E. Alexander receives funding from the Mellon Foundation and has previously received funding from the Public Religion Research Institute. As a private individual, she is a member of the Nebraska Alliance for Thriving Communities, a statewide network of businesses, institutions, and individuals seeking immigration reform solutions.

– ref. Whether Christians should prioritize care for migrants as much as for fellow citizens has been debated for centuries – https://theconversation.com/whether-christians-should-prioritize-care-for-migrants-as-much-as-for-fellow-citizens-has-been-debated-for-centuries-248640

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Rural Americans don’t live as long as those in cities − new research

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Elizabeth Currid-Halkett, James Irvine Chair in Urban and Regional Planning and Professor of Public Policy, University of Southern California

Part of the problem is that people living in rural areas don’t always have easy access to health care. cstar55/iStock via Getty Images

Rural Americans – particularly men – are expected to live significantly shorter, less healthy lives than their urban counterparts, according to our research, recently published in the Journal of Rural Health.

We found that a 60-year-old man living in a rural area is expected on average to live two fewer years than an urban man. For women, the rural-urban gap is six months.

A key reason is worse rates among rural people for smoking, obesity and chronic conditions such as high blood pressure and heart disease. These conditions are condemning millions to disability and shortened lives.

What’s more, these same people live in areas where medical care is evaporating. Living in rural areas, with their relatively sparse populations, often means a shortage of doctors, longer travel distances for medical care and inadequate investments in public health, driven partly by declines in economic opportunities.

Our team arrived at these findings by using a simulation called the Future Elderly Model. With that, we were able to simulate the future life course of Americans currently age 60 living in either an urban or rural area.

The model is based on relationships observed in 20 years of data from the Health and Retirement Study, an ongoing survey that follows people from age 51 through the rest of their lives. Specifically, the model showed how long these Americans might live, the expected quality of their future years, and how certain changes in lifestyle would affect the results.

We describe the conditions that drive our results as “diseases of despair,” building off the landmark work of pioneering researchers who coined the now widely used term “deaths of despair.” They documented rising mortality among Americans without a college degree and related these deaths to declines in social and economic prospects.

The main causes of deaths of despair – drug overdoses, liver disease and suicide – have also been called “diseases of despair.” But the conditions we study, such as heart disease, could similarly be influenced by social and economic prospects. And they can profoundly reduce quality of life.

We also found that if rural education levels were as high as in urban areas, this would eliminate almost half of the rural-urban life-expectancy gap. Our data shows 65% of urban 60-year-olds were educated beyond high school, compared with 53% of rural residents the same age.

One possible reason for the difference is that getting a bachelor’s degree may make a person more able or willing to follow scientific recommendations – and more likely to work out for 150 minutes a week or eat their veggies as their doctor advises them to.

Rural communities are increasingly hampered by their lack of access to health care.

Why it matters

The gap between urban and rural health outcomes has widened over recent decades. Yet the problem goes beyond disparities between urban and rural health: It also splits down some of the party lines and social divides that separate U.S. citizens, such as education and lifestyle.

Scholarship on the decline of rural America suggests that people living outside larger cities are resentful of the economic forces that may have eroded their economic power. The interplay between these forces and the health conditions we study are less appreciated.

Economic circumstances can contribute to health outcomes. For example, increased stress and sedentary lifestyle due to joblessness can contribute to chronic health issues such as cardiovascular disease. Declines in economic prospects due to automation and trade liberalization are linked to increases in mortality.

But health can also have a strong influence on economic outcomes. Hospitalizations cause high medical costs, loss of work and earnings, and increases in bankruptcy. The onset of chronic disease and disability can lead to long-lasting declines in income. Even health events experienced early in childhood can have economic consequences decades later.

In tandem, these health and economic trends might reinforce each other and help fuel inequality between rural and urban areas that produces a profoundly different quality of life.

What still isn’t known

It should be noted that our results, like many studies, are describing outcomes on average; the rural population is not a monolith. In fact, some of the most physically active and healthy people we know live in rural areas.

Just how much your location affects your health is an ongoing area of research. But as researchers begin to understand more, we can come up with strategies to promote health among all Americans, regardless of where they live.

The Research Brief is a short take on interesting academic work.

Elizabeth Currid-Halkett was the Kluge Chair in Modern Culture at the Library of Congress while conducting some of this research.

Currid-Halkett is on the Scholars’ Council for the nonprofit Braver Angels.

Bryan Tysinger receives funding from NIA.

Jack Chapel does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Rural Americans don’t live as long as those in cities − new research – https://theconversation.com/rural-americans-dont-live-as-long-as-those-in-cities-new-research-242261

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: How opioid deaths tripled in Philly over a decade − and what may be behind a recent downturn

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Ben Cocchiaro, Assistant Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Community Health, Drexel University

Fatal overdose deaths in Philadelphia dropped 7% in 2023. The city is expected to release 2024 data in the spring. Spencer Platt via Getty Images

After nearly a decade of almost year-over-year increases in overdose deaths, the tide may finally be turning in Philadelphia.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention announced in May 2024 an estimated 3% decrease in overdose deaths in the U.S. in 2023 compared with 2022. Shortly after, data from the Philadelphia Department of Public Health showed a similar trend: Fatal overdoses across the city decreased 7% in 2023, from 1,207 to 1,122. The city is expected to release its 2024 data in the spring of 2025.

While these declines are notable, the city’s 2023 fatal overdose numbers are three times higher than they were in 2013.

Still, if 2024 numbers confirm the downward trend, it allows a little hope into an otherwise bleak epidemic that is killing more Philadelphians than homicides, car accidents and diabetes combined.

Something may finally be working. But what?

If over a decade spent treating and researching substance use disorders has taught me anything, it’s that the overdose epidemic is what researchers and policymakers refer to as a wicked problem. Wicked problems are constantly changing, complex, interconnected knots of other problems with no clear solution.

But let’s look at what we do know about how overdose deaths in Philadelphia spiked in the first place – and why they may finally be decreasing.

Why overdose deaths spiked

The first wave of the overdose epidemic began in the late 1990s and is attributed to overprescription of opioid pain medicines. But the largest acceleration in deaths didn’t occur until after the government and health insurers implemented prescribing controls in the early 2010s. These controls led many people who were no longer able to get prescribed opioids to turn to illicit heroin.

In a phenomenon known as the “iron law of prohibition,” stricter drug law enforcement led drug-trafficking organizations to shift from heroin toward more powerful synthetic opioids that are easier to produce, conceal and distribute. Gram for gram, pure fentanyl is over 50 times stronger than pure heroin.

But street-obtained fentanyl has proven to be anything but pure.

Local drug-testing efforts found as much as a fiftyfold difference in potency between bags of fentanyl that appear identical.

This unpredictable potency is considered to be the chief contributor to the deadliness of street fentanyl. It’s like cracking a beer and not knowing whether drinking it will get you mildly buzzed or send you to the graveyard.

Research suggests drug busts, though touted as improving public safety, can lead to more inconsistency and unpredictability in the potency of illicit opioids. An analysis of 14 studies conducted in the U.S. demonstrated a marked increase in fatal overdoses following the supply disruptions that result from drug seizures.

There’s also some evidence that the heightened economic insecurity and despair caused by the COVID-19 pandemic may have intensified the fatal overdose epidemic.

Andres Freire of Prevention Point stands on the ‘bupe bus,’ a mobile service that offers medication treatment such as buprenorphine to people with opioid use disorder in Philadelphia.
Jeff Fusco for The Conversation U.S., CC BY-NC-ND

Potential reasons for decline

Just as economic insecurity was associated with rising deaths, the subsequent economic recovery as the U.S. emerged from the pandemic may have contributed to the 2023 drop in overdose fatalities nationwide.

However, the unequal distribution of that recovery seems to track with worsening racial disparities in overdose rates in the late 2010s to early 2020s.

Another possible explanation for the reduction in overdose deaths is the increasing availability of buprenorphine.

Buprenorphine, an FDA-approved medication for opioid use disorder, reduces withdrawal and cravings for fentanyl. What’s more, it decreases overdose risk by more than 50%.

However, efforts to increase access to this medication have stagnated. National prescribing rates for buprenorphine were relatively stable from 2019 to 2023, and the CDC estimates that only a quarter of those who need treatment are getting it. Efforts to make buprenorphine available without a prescription have not yet gained traction.

Access to and education around naloxone, a lifesaving drug used to reverse opioid overdoses, has also increased, and the drug is increasingly being administered by bystanders. Over 1.3 million doses were distributed in Pennsylvania since 2017. National research suggests these distribution efforts, often spearheaded by local harm-reduction organizations, have led to quicker administration of naloxone. This saves lives while also decreasing reliance on emergency medical services.

Finally, the consequences of a seemingly minor characteristic of fentanyl’s pharmacology might also be reducing the overdose death rate in Philadelphia.

Fentanyl’s effects last only a third as long as heroin. This shorter duration led drug traffickers to add the animal tranquilizer xylazine – also called “tranq” – and the veterinary anesthetic medetomidine into Philadelphia’s street drug supply. In 2019, two-thirds of heroin or fentanyl sampled in Philadelphia had xylazine in it. By 2021 all of it did.

These additives lengthen the duration of the effect, mitigate withdrawal symptoms and possibly reduce the amount of fentanyl needed per dose. Some evidence from animal studies shows that xylazine reduces fentanyl intake by suppressing fentanyl withdrawal, thereby lengthening the time before a person uses again.

What’s more, the skin wounds and sedative effects that are associated with xylazine may be motivating some people to avoid using street fentanyl.

Over 1.3 million doses of naloxone have been distributed for free in Pennsylvania since 2017.
Jeff Fusco for The Conversation U.S., CC BY-NC-ND

What’s next for Philadelphia

The opioid settlement, a multibillion-dollar payment from the pharmaceutical industry to resolve legal actions against them, has led to increased funding in Philadelphia for naloxone and medications such as buprenorphine to treat opioid use disorder.

However, in the past year the city eliminated funding for needle exchanges and implemented compulsory treatment strategies, which research suggests often do not reduce drug use or criminal recidividism.

Meanwhile, at the federal level, Republican members of Congress have proposed cuts to Medicaid, the health insurance program for low-income Americans.

Whether new data, when it’s released, will show overdose deaths in Philly have continued to decline or are back on the rise is anybody’s guess. But I do know that harm-reduction advocates, medical providers and communities of people who use drugs will continue to fight this epidemic as if their lives depend on it. For many, it does.

Ben Cocchiaro is affiliated with Prevention Point Philadelphia but his opinions are his own. He served on the Data Analysis and Sharing Subcommittee of the Philadelphia Mayor’s Task Force to Combat the Opiate Epidemic from 2016-2017.

– ref. How opioid deaths tripled in Philly over a decade − and what may be behind a recent downturn – https://theconversation.com/how-opioid-deaths-tripled-in-philly-over-a-decade-and-what-may-be-behind-a-recent-downturn-247768

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Decluttering can be stressful − a clinical psychologist explains how personal values can make it easier

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Mary E. Dozier, Assistant Professor of Psychology, Mississippi State University

Asking how discarding an item fits with a person’s goals can help them decide whether to keep it. MoMo Productions via Getty Images

I recently helped my mom sort through boxes she inherited when my grandparents passed away. One box was labeled – either ironically or genuinely – “toothpick holders and other treasures.” Inside were many keepsakes from moments now lost to history – although we found no toothpick holders.

My favorite of the items we sorted through was a solitary puzzle piece, an artifact reflecting my late grandmother’s penchant for hiding the final piece to a jigsaw puzzle just to swoop in at the last moment and finish it.

After several hours of reminiscing, my mom and I threw away 90% of what we had sorted.

“Why did I keep this?” is a question I hear frequently, both from my family and friends and from patients. I am a licensed clinical psychologist whose research focuses on the characterization, assessment and treatment of hoarding disorder, particularly for adults 60 years of age or older. As such, I spend a great deal of my time thinking about this question.

What drives the need to keep stuff?

Hoarding disorder is a psychiatric condition defined by urges to save items and difficulty discarding current possessions. For adults with “clinically severe” hoarding disorder, this leads to a level of household clutter that impairs daily functioning and can even create a fire hazard. In my professional experience, however, many adults struggle with clutter even if they do not meet the clinical criteria for hoarding disorder.

Holding on to things that have sentimental value or could be useful in the future is a natural part of growing older. For some people, though, this tendency to hold on to objects grows over time, to the point that they eventually do meet criteria for hoarding disorder. Age-related changes in executive function may help explain the increase in prevalence of hoarding disorder as we get older; increasing difficulty with decision-making in general also affects decisions around household clutter.

The traditional model behind hoarding disorder suggests that difficulty with discarding comes from distress during decision-making. However, my research shows that this may be less true of older adults.

Time to declutter.
Kurt Whitman/Education Images via Getty Images

When I was a graduate student, I conducted a study in which we asked adults with hoarding disorder to spend 15 minutes making decisions about whether to keep or discard various items brought from their home. Participants could sort whatever items they wanted. Most chose to sort paper items such as old mail, cards or notes.

We found that age was associated with lower levels of distress during the task, such that participants who were older tended to feel less stressed when making the decision about what to keep and what to discard. We also found that many participants, particularly those who were older, actually reported positive emotions while sorting their items.

In new research publishing soon, my current team replicated this finding using a home-based version of the task. This suggests that fear of making the wrong decision isn’t a universal driver of our urge to save items.

In fact, a study my team published in August 2024 with adults over 50 with hoarding disorder suggests that altruism, a personality trait of wanting to help others, may explain why some people keep items that others might discard. My colleagues and I compared our participants’ personality profiles with that of adults in the general population of the same gender and age group. Compared with the general population, participants with hoarding disorder scored almost universally high on altruism.

Altruism also comes up frequently in my clinical work with older adults who struggle with clutter. People in our studies often tell me that they have held onto something out of a sense of responsibility, either for the item itself or to the environment.

“I need it to go to a good home” and “my grandmother gave this to me” are sentiments we commonly hear. Thus, people may keep things not out of fear of losing them but because saving them is consistent with their values.

Your values can help guide which possessions should stay in your life and which ones should go.

Leaning into values

In a 2024 study, my team demonstrated that taking a values-based approach to decluttering helps older adults to decrease household clutter and increases their positive affect, a state of mind characterized by feelings such as joy and contentment. Clinicians visited the homes of older adults with hoarding disorder for one hour per week for six weeks. At each visit, the clinicians used a technique called motivational interviewing to help participants talk through their decisions while they sorted household clutter.

We found that having participants start with identifying their values allowed them to maintain focus on their long-term goals. Too often, people focus on the immediate ability of an object to “spark joy” and forget to consider whether an object has greater meaning and purpose. Values are the abstract beliefs that we humans use to create our goals. Values are whatever drives us and can include family, faith or frivolity.

Because values are subjective, what people identify as important to keep is also subjective. For example, the dress I wore to my sister’s wedding reminded me of a wonderful day. However, when it no longer fit I gave it away because doing so was more consistent with my values of utility and helpfulness: I wanted the dress to go to someone who needed it and would use it. Someone who more strongly valued family and beauty might have prioritized keeping the dress because of the aesthetics and its link to a family event.

Additionally, we found that instead of challenging the reasons a person might have for keeping an item, it is helpful to instead focus on eliciting their reasons for discarding it and the goals they have for their home and their life.

Tips for sweeping away the old

My research on using motivational interviewing for decluttering and my observations from a current clinical trial on the approach point to some practical steps people can take to declutter their home. Although my work has been primarily with older adults, these tips should be helpful for people of all ages.

Start with writing out your values. Every object in your home should feel value-consistent for you. For example, if tradition and faith are important values for you, you might be more inclined to hold onto a cookbook that was made by the elders at your church and more able to let go of a cookbook you picked up on a whim at a bookstore.

If, instead, health and creativity are your core values, it might be more important to hold onto a cookbook of novel ways to sneak more vegetables into your diet.

Defining value-consistent goals for using your space can help to maintain motivation as you declutter. Are you clearing off your desk so you can work more efficiently? Making space on kitchen counters to bake cookies with your grandchildren?

Remember that sometimes your values will conflict. At those moments, it may help to reflect on whether keeping or discarding an object will bring you closer to your goals for the space.

Similarly, remember that values are subjective. If you are helping a loved one declutter, maintain a curious, nonjudgmental attitude. Where you might see a box filled with junk, your grandmother might see something filled with “toothpick holders and other treasures.”

For additional resources and information on hoarding disorder, visit the International OCD Foundation website.

Mary E. Dozier has received funding from the American Psychological Foundation and the National Institute of Mental Health.

– ref. Decluttering can be stressful − a clinical psychologist explains how personal values can make it easier – https://theconversation.com/decluttering-can-be-stressful-a-clinical-psychologist-explains-how-personal-values-can-make-it-easier-247171

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Legal fight against AI-generated child pornography is complicated – a legal scholar explains why, and how the law could catch up

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Wayne Unger, Assistant Professor of Law, Quinnipiac University

Child pornography laws may be clear, but AI makes enforcement more difficult. AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite

The city of Lancaster, Pennsylvania, was shaken by revelations in December 2023 that two local teenage boys shared hundreds of nude images of girls in their community over a private chat on the social chat platform Discord. Witnesses said the photos easily could have been mistaken for real ones, but they were fake. The boys had used an artificial intelligence tool to superimpose real photos of girls’ faces onto sexually explicit images.

With troves of real photos available on social media platforms, and AI tools becoming more accessible across the web, similar incidents have played out across the country, from California to Texas and Wisconsin. A recent survey by the Center for Democracy and Technology, a Washington D.C.-based nonprofit, found that 15% of students and 11% of teachers knew of at least one deepfake that depicted someone associated with their school in a sexually explicit or intimate manner.

The Supreme Court has implicitly concluded that computer-generated pornographic images that are based on images of real children are illegal. The use of generative AI technologies to make deepfake pornographic images of minors almost certainly falls under the scope of that ruling. As a legal scholar who studies the intersection of constitutional law and emerging technologies, I see an emerging challenge to the status quo: AI-generated images that are fully fake but indistinguishable from real photos.

Policing child sexual abuse material

While the internet’s architecture has always made it difficult to control what is shared online, there are a few kinds of content that most regulatory authorities across the globe agree should be censored. Child pornography is at the top of that list.

For decades, law enforcement agencies have worked with major tech companies to identify and remove this kind of material from the web, and to prosecute those who create or circulate it. But the advent of generative artificial intelligence and easy-to-access tools like the ones used in the Pennsylvania case present a vexing new challenge for such efforts.

In the legal field, child pornography is generally referred to as child sexual abuse material, or CSAM, because the term better reflects the abuse that is depicted in the images and videos and the resulting trauma to the children involved. In 1982, the Supreme Court ruled that child pornography is not protected under the First Amendment because safeguarding the physical and psychological well-being of a minor is a compelling government interest that justifies laws that prohibit child sexual abuse material.

That case, New York v. Ferber, effectively allowed the federal government and all 50 states to criminalize traditional child sexual abuse material. But a subsequent case, Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition from 2002, might complicate efforts to criminalize AI-generated child sexual abuse material. In that case, the court struck down a law that prohibited computer-generated child pornography, effectively rendering it legal.

The government’s interest in protecting the physical and psychological well-being of children, the court found, was not implicated when such obscene material is computer generated. “Virtual child pornography is not ‘intrinsically related’ to the sexual abuse of children,” the court wrote.

States move to criminalize AI-generated CSAM

According to the child advocacy organization Enough Abuse, 37 states have criminalized AI-generated or AI-modified CSAM, either by amending existing child sexual abuse material laws or enacting new ones. More than half of those 37 states enacted new laws or amended their existing ones within the past year.

California, for example, enacted Assembly Bill 1831 on Sept. 29, 2024, which amended its penal code to prohibit the creation, sale, possession and distribution of any “digitally altered or artificial-intelligence-generated matter” that depicts a person under 18 engaging in or simulating sexual conduct.

Deepfake child pornography is a growing problem.

While some of these state laws target the use of photos of real people to generate these deep fakes, others go further, defining child sexual abuse material as “any image of a person who appears to be a minor under 18 involved in sexual activity,” according to Enough Abuse. Laws like these that encompass images produced without depictions of real minors might run counter to the Supreme Court’s Ashcroft v. Free Speech Coalition ruling.

Real vs. fake, and telling the difference

Perhaps the most important part of the Ashcroft decision for emerging issues around AI-generated child sexual abuse material was part of the statute that the Supreme Court did not strike down. That provision of the law prohibited “more common and lower tech means of creating virtual (child sexual abuse material), known as computer morphing,” which involves taking pictures of real minors and morphing them into sexually explicit depictions.

The court’s decision stated that these digitally altered sexually explicit depictions of minors “implicate the interests of real children and are in that sense closer to the images in Ferber.” The decision referenced the 1982 case, New York v. Ferber, in which the Supreme Court upheld a New York criminal statute that prohibited persons from knowingly promoting sexual performances by children under the age of 16.

The court’s decisions in Ferber and Ashcroft could be used to argue that any AI-generated sexually explicit image of real minors should not be protected as free speech given the psychological harms inflicted on the real minors. But that argument has yet to be made before the court. The court’s ruling in Ashcroft may permit AI-generated sexually explicit images of fake minors.

But Justice Clarence Thomas, who concurred in Ashcroft, cautioned that “if technological advances thwart prosecution of ‘unlawful speech,’ the Government may well have a compelling interest in barring or otherwise regulating some narrow category of ‘lawful speech’ in order to enforce effectively laws against pornography made through the abuse of real children.”

With the recent significant advances in AI, it can be difficult if not impossible for law enforcement officials to distinguish between images of real and fake children. It’s possible that we’ve reached the point where computer-generated child sexual abuse material will need to be banned so that federal and state governments can effectively enforce laws aimed at protecting real children – the point that Thomas warned about over 20 years ago.

If so, easy access to generative AI tools is likely to force the courts to grapple with the issue.

Wayne Unger does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Legal fight against AI-generated child pornography is complicated – a legal scholar explains why, and how the law could catch up – https://theconversation.com/legal-fight-against-ai-generated-child-pornography-is-complicated-a-legal-scholar-explains-why-and-how-the-law-could-catch-up-247980

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Global: Mirror life is a scientific fantasy leading to a dangerous reality − a synthetic biologist explains how mirror bacteria could conquer life on Earth

Source: The Conversation – USA – By Kate Adamala, Assistant Professor of Genetics, Cell Biology and Development, University of Minnesota

Synthetic biology offers many tantalizing possibilities, but scientists consider some projects too risky to pursue. DBenitostock/Moment via Getty Images

Most major biological molecules, including all proteins, DNA and RNA, point in one direction or another. In other words, they are chiral, or handed. Like how your left glove fits only your left hand and your right glove your right hand, chiral molecules can interact only with other molecules of compatible handedness.

Two chiralities are possible: left and right, formally called L for the Latin laevus and D for dexter. All life on Earth uses L proteins and D sugars. Even Archaea, a large group of microorganisms with unusual chemical compositions, stick to the program on the handedness of the main molecules they use.

For a long time, scientists have been speculating about making biopolymers that would mirror compounds in nature but in the opposite orientation – namely, compounds made of D proteins and L sugars. Recent years have seen some promising advancements, including enzymes that can make mirror RNAs and mirror DNAs.

Chirality refers to something that is not superimposable on its mirror image – like your hands.
NASA

When scientists observed that these mirror molecules behave just like their natural equivalents they considered that it would be possible to make a whole living cell from them. Mirror bacteria in particular had the potential to be a useful basic research tool – possibly allowing scientists to study a new tree of life for the first time and solve many problems in bioengineering and biomedicine.

This so-called mirror life – living cells made from building blocks with an opposite chirality to those that make up natural life – could have very similar properties to natural living cells. They could live in the same environment, compete for resources and behave like you would expect of any living organism. They would be able to evade infection from other predators and immune systems because these opponents wouldn’t be able to recognize them.

These features are why researchers like me were so attracted to mirror life in the first place. But these qualities are also huge bugs of this technology that make it a problem.

I am a synthetic biologist who studies using chemistry to create living cells. I am also a bioengineer who develops tools for the bioeconomy. As a chemist by training, engineering mirror life initially seemed like a fascinating way to answer foundational questions about biology and practically apply those findings to industry and medicine. As I learned more about the immunology and ecology of mirror life, however, I became aware of the potential environmental and health consequences of this technology.

Real concerns about hypothetical mirror life

It’s important to note that researchers are likely at least 10 to 30 years away from creating mirror bacteria. On the timescale of a fast-moving field like synthetic biology, a decade is a very long time. Creating synthetic cells is difficult on its own. Creating mirrored ones would require several technical breakthroughs.

However, it would come with a risk. If mirror cells were released into the environment, they would likely be able to quickly proliferate without much restriction. The natural mechanisms that keep ecosystems in balance, including infection and predation, would not work on mirror life.

Bacteria, like most life forms, are susceptible to viral infections. These bacterial viruses, or bacteriophages, enter bacteria by binding to their surface receptors and then use their cellular machinery to replicate. But just as a left glove doesn’t fit a right hand, natural bacteriophages wouldn’t recognize mirror cell receptors or be able to use its machinery. Mirror life would likely be resistant to viruses.

Mirror bacteria may be able to evade the bacteriophages that would otherwise help keep them in check. Here, multiple bacteriophages are attached to a bacterial cell wall.
Professor Graham Beards/Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA

Microorganisms foraging in the environment also keep bacterial populations in check. They differentiate food from nonfood by using chemical “taste” receptors. Anything those receptors bind to, such as bacteria and organic debris, are considered edible, while things that cannot bind to those receptors, such as rocks, are classified as inedible. Think about how a dog foraging on the kitchen floor will eat a bread roll but only sniff a spoon and move on. Mirror life would be, to the bacterial predators, more like a spoon than bread – predators would “sniff” it with their receptors and move on because these cells can’t bind.

Safety from being eaten would be great news for mirror bacteria, because it would allow it to replicate freely. It would be much worse news to the rest of the ecosystem, because mirror bacteria might hog all the nutrients and spread uncontrollably. Even if mirror bacteria don’t actively attack other organisms, they would still consume food sources other organisms need. And since mirror cells would have much lower death rates than regular organisms due to a lack of predation, they would slowly but surely take over the environment.

Even if mirror cells grow more slowly than normal cells, they would be able to grow without anything stopping them.

Insufficient immunity

Another biological control mechanism that wouldn’t be able to “sniff” out mirror cells is the immune system.

Your immune cells constantly check everything they find in your blood. The decision tree of an immune cell is fairly simple. First, decide whether something is alive or not, then compare it with its database of “self” – your own cells. If it is alive but is not a part of you, then it needs to be killed. Mirror cells likely wouldn’t pass the first step of that screen: it would not induce an immune response because the immune system would not be able to recognize or bind to mirror cell antigens. This means mirror cells could infect an unprecedentedly wide variety of hosts.

You might think an infection from mirror bacteria could be treated with antibiotics of the same handedness. It would probably work, and may even be easier on your gut than regular antibiotic therapy. Because antibiotics are also handed, mirror versions of these drugs would not affect your gut microbiome, just like how regular antibioics would not affect mirror cells.

But humans are a relatively small part of the ecosystem. All other animals and plants may also be susceptible to infection from mirror pathogens. While it is possible to imagine developing mirror antibiotics to treat human infections, it is physically impossible to treat the entire plant and animal world. If all organisms are susceptible to even a slow-moving infection by mirror bacteria, there is no good treatment that could be deployed across the entire ecosystem.

Better safe than sorry

Mirror life is an exciting research subject and a potential tool with some practical applications in medicine and biotechnology. But for many scientists, including me, none of those benefits outweigh the serious consequences to human health and the environment that mirror life poses.

I and a group of researchers in immunology, ecology, biosafety and security – including some who used to actively work on mirror life – conducted a thorough analysis of possible concerns regarding the creation of mirror life. No matter how we looked at it, straight up or in the mirror, the conclusions were clear: The potential benefits of engineering mirror life are not worth the risk.

Mirror life is scientifically tantalizing but ethically unwise.

There is no way to make anything completely foolproof, and that includes any safeguards built into a mirror cell that could prevent the risk of accidental or deliberate release into the environment. Researchers working in this space, including us, may find this disappointing. But not making mirror cells can ensure the safety and security of the planet. More discussion among the global scientific community about what kinds of research on mirror biomolecules and related technologies are safe – as well as how to regulate this research – can help safeguard against potential harms.

Keeping mirror cells inside the mirror, rather than making them a physical reality, is the clearest path to staying safe.

Kate Adamala does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.

– ref. Mirror life is a scientific fantasy leading to a dangerous reality − a synthetic biologist explains how mirror bacteria could conquer life on Earth – https://theconversation.com/mirror-life-is-a-scientific-fantasy-leading-to-a-dangerous-reality-a-synthetic-biologist-explains-how-mirror-bacteria-could-conquer-life-on-earth-245842

MIL OSI – Global Reports –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: Council Tax needs to be replaced not reformed say Scottish Greens

Source: Scottish Greens

11 Feb 2025 Finance

Councils and local communities deserve our support to succeed.

More in Finance

Council Tax is a broken system that needs to be replaced rather than reformed, says Scottish Greens spokesperson for local government, Ariane Burgess MSP.

The call comes as the Scottish Government has announced that it is taking action to make the system “fairer.”

Ms Burgess said:

“Council tax is an outdated and broken tax that works for nobody.

“It isn’t fair to the households who are paying it and does not benefit the councils that are struggling to fund essential services.

“From schools and social care to waste collections, libraries and community centres, our councils are on the front line of delivering for our communities. We need to support them.

“Tweaking and reforming it is not enough. It is time to replace it with a fairer and more progressive system that would see most households paying less while the wealthiest would pay more.”

Ms Burgess added:

“The Scottish Greens have already delivered important reforms, like doubling Council Tax on holiday homes and allowing councils to set tourist levies, raising money for local services and helping to tackle the housing crisis.”

MIL OSI United Kingdom –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI United Kingdom: New UK sanctions target Russian cybercrime network
Source: United Kingdom – Executive Government & Departments

A key Russian cybercrime syndicate responsible for aiding merciless ransomware attacks around the world has been targeted by new UK sanctions.
UK sanctions target Russian cyber entity, ZSERVERS responsible for facilitating crippling ransomware attacks globally

targets also include 6 ZSERVERS members who are part of a prolific cybercrime supply chain, and their UK front company XHOST

action on illicit Russian cybercrime syndicate is latest step to strengthen UK national security

Fresh sanctions are targeting ZSERVERS, a key component of the Russian cybercrime supply chain, and 6 of its members, as well as its UK front company, XHOST Internet Solutions LP. ZSERVERS provide vital infrastructure for cybercriminals as they plan and execute attacks against the UK.

The illicit supply chain protects, supports and conceals the operations of some of the world’s most ruthless ransomware gangs. Ransomware actors rely on these services to launch attacks, extort victims and store stolen data.

In the modern digital-first economy, cyber security is a non-negotiable cornerstone of business success. A secure digital economy is a less attractive target for cybercriminals and a more attractive home for investment, generating jobs and putting more money into hardworking people’s pockets, delivering on this government’s Plan for Change.

Foreign Secretary, David Lammy, said:

Putin has built a corrupt mafia state driven by greed and ruthlessness. It is no surprise that the most unscrupulous extortionists and cyber-criminals run rampant from within his borders.

This government will continue to work with partners to constrain the Kremlin and the impact of Russia’s lawless cyber underworld. We must counter their actions at every opportunity to safeguard the UK’s national security and deliver on our Plan for Change.

Predatory ransomware groups pose a clear and persistent threat to national security, public services and privacy. These attacks threaten critical national infrastructure, disrupt essential services, compromise sensitive data and generated $1 billion from their victims globally in 2023 alone.

Minister of State for Security, Dan Jarvis, said:

Ransomware attacks by Russian affiliated cybercrime gangs are some of the most harmful cyber threats we face today and the government is tackling them head on. Denying cybercriminals the tools of their trade weakens their capacity to do serious harm to the UK.

We have already announced new world-first proposals to deter ransomware attacks and destroy their business model. With these targeted sanctions and the full weight of our law enforcement, we are countering the threats we face to protect our national security, a foundation of our Plan for Change, and our economy.

ZSERVERS explicitly advertise themselves to illicit actors as a Bulletproof Hosting (BPH) Provider. Some BPH are known to host hackers, misinformation, child exploitation material, spam and hate speech. BPH providers like ZSERVERS, protect and enable cybercriminals, offering a range of purchasable tools which mask their locations, identities, and activities. Targeting these providers can disrupt hundreds or thousands of criminals simultaneously.

Today’s action is the latest in a series of coordinated steps alongside US and Australian partners, and comes off the back of recent sanctions against notorious ransomware groups LockBit and Evil Corp.

LockBit affiliates are known to have used ZSERVERS as a launch pad for targeting the UK, enabling ransomware attacks against various targets, including the non-profit sector.

Protecting the nation from threats both physical and digital sits at the foundation of the government’s Plan for Change. That is why we are moving through the entire ransomware pipeline step by step, cracking down on Russian cybercriminals that threaten the UK’s security, integrity, and prosperity.

Background

The full list of those sanctioned today:

ZSERVERS

XHOST Internet Solutions LP

Aleksandr Bolshakov (employee)

Aleksandr Mishin (employee)

Ilya Sidorov (employee)

Dmitriy Bolshakov (employee)

Igor Odintsov (employee)

Vladimir Ananev (employee)

Further information on how our actions align with the UK government’s overall strategy to disrupt cybercrime, and how these actors support the broader cybercrime ecosystem: Ransomware, extortion and the cyber crime ecosystem, NCSC.GOV.UK

An overview of Bulletproof Hosting (BPH) providers from our Australian partners: “Bulletproof” hosting providers, Cyber.gov.au

View the full UK Sanctions List and more information on UK sanctions relating to Russia.

Media enquiries

Email newsdesk@fcdo.gov.uk

Telephone 020 7008 3100

Contact the FCDO Communication Team via email (monitored 24 hours a day) in the first instance, and we will respond as soon as possible.

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Published 11 February 2025

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MIL OSI United Kingdom –
February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI Security: Oceana County Man Sentenced To 90 Years For Sexually Exploiting A Child

Source: Office of United States Attorneys

GRAND RAPIDS, MICHIGAN — Acting U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Michigan Andrew Birge announced that Brandon Lee Chase, 45, of Walkerville, previously pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual exploitation of a minor and was sentenced yesterday to 90 years in federal prison.

According to court documents, Chase sexually abused the child of a woman he was dating. The sexual abuse happened repeatedly and continued for years. Chase also recorded explicit videos of the abuse. Chase is a repeat sex offender and has also pleaded no contest to criminal sexual conduct in a separate case that is pending sentencing in Shelby Village.

“Today’s sentencing of Brandon Chase is a decisive victory in the FBI’s unyielding battle against sexual predators who prey on our most vulnerable population,” said Cheyvoryea Gibson, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI in Michigan. “I am grateful of the tireless investigative efforts of the FBI’s WEBCHEX Task Force, alongside our law enforcement partners at the Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office and the Muskegon Justice for Women Task Force. The priority of the FBI in Michigan is to protect our communities and disrupt criminal acts that could harm the residents and visitors of Michigan. Lastly, I would like to thank the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Michigan for their essential partnership in ensuring Mr. Chase is held accountable for his criminal acts and that those who were victimized are a step closer to healing.”

This case was investigated by the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Ottawa County Sheriff’s Office, Muskegon Township Police Department, and Muskegon Police Department. Assistant United States Attorney Doaa Al-Howaishy prosecuted it.

This case is part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide initiative designed to protect children from online exploitation and abuse. The U.S. Attorney’s Office, county prosecutor’s offices, the Internet Crimes Against Children task force (ICAC), federal, state, tribal, and local law enforcement are working closely together to locate, apprehend, and prosecute individuals who exploit children. The partners in Project Safe Childhood work to educate local communities about the dangers of online child exploitation, and to teach children how to protect themselves. For more information about Project Safe Childhood, visit www.projectsafechildhood.gov. Individuals with information or concerns about possible child exploitation should contact local law enforcement officials.

###

MIL Security OSI –

February 12, 2025
MIL-OSI: Siebert Financial Launches Investment Banking Division, Adding Industry Leaders Kimberly Boulmetis and Ajay Asija as Co-Heads

Source: GlobeNewswire (MIL-OSI)

MIAMI and NEW YORK, Feb. 11, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Siebert Financial Corp. (NASDAQ: SIEB) has launched Siebert Investment Banking, a strategic expansion designed to serve middle-market clients often overlooked by larger financial institutions. Leading this new division are Kimberly Boulmetis and Ajay Asija, two seasoned professionals with extensive experience in capital markets, M&A, and financial advisory services.

Siebert Investment Banking will initially focus on providing tailored solutions for underserved companies in financial services in FinTech, depository, and specialty finance, expanding the practice into blockchain and digital assets and building additional verticals over time. In addition to the existing institutional distribution channels, the new division will be able to leverage Siebert’s extensive retail distribution network. The firm is uniquely positioned to provide certainty of execution in equity and debt financings while offering a client-centric, transparent business model that attracts top banking talent.

John J. Gebbia Sr., CEO of Siebert Financial, emphasized the firm’s strategic vision. “Investment banking is a natural extension of Siebert’s commitment to providing best-in-class financial solutions to its clients. Kimberly and Ajay bring the expertise and leadership necessary to develop a strong platform, serving a vital market segment.”

Asija and Boulmetis’ appointment strategically complements the recent expansion of the firm with the Capital Markets Group, led by Randy Billhardt complementing Siebert’s existing strengths.

Ajay Asija, bringing over 25 years of experience in investment banking, has advised on over $90 billion in transactions throughout his career at firms including Lehman Brothers, J.P. Morgan, Bear Stearns, and B. Riley. Most recently, he served as CFO of BM Technologies, a publicly traded FinTech company, orchestrating its successful sale to First Carolina Bank. His M&A and strategic financial advisory expertise make him a key driver in Siebert’s expansion.

“The middle market deserves the same level of expertise and execution as larger firms,” said Asija. “Siebert’s platform offers the ideal foundation to deliver trusted high-quality advisory services to clients who need them most.”

With over 25 years of experience in debt capital markets and financial institutions advisory, Kimberly Boulmetis most recently was the head of U.S. Financial Institutions for the DCM Group at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) where she was responsible for covering a broad roster of financial institution clients – including banks, insurance companies, asset management firms, private equity sponsors, business development companies (BDCs) and closed-end funds. She has a deep knowledge of markets, providing her clients with innovative strategic and financing solutions in both public & private markets. One of her major areas of focus is helping ’40 Act companies, specifically BDCs and Closed-End Funds, optimize their cost of capital.

“I am so excited to join Siebert, a firm that was originally founded by Muriel Siebert, a true trailblazer, with current leadership that honors her legacy with incredible focus, drive, and the desire to continue to strategically enhance the firm for our clients’ benefit,” said Boulmetis. “Siebert’s current platform, coupled with the areas that the firm is building out, will allow Randy, Ajay & I to be extremely well-positioned to truly add value to our clients from a corporate advisory and capital raising perspective.”

Randy Billhardt, Head of Capital Markets at Siebert, comments, “Investment banking at Siebert will be defined by its ability to provide a boutique, high-touch experience while leveraging the firm’s broad distribution network. I am proud to welcome Kimberly and Ajay to Siebert, adding their deep expertise and leadership to our growing capabilities.”

About Siebert Financial Corp.
Siebert is a diversified financial services company and has been a member of the NYSE since 1967 when Muriel Siebert became the first woman to own a seat on the NYSE and the first to head one of its member firms.

Siebert operates through its subsidiaries Muriel Siebert & Co., LLC, Siebert AdvisorNXT, LLC, Park Wilshire Companies, Inc., RISE Financial Services, LLC, Siebert Technologies, LLC, and StockCross Digital Solutions, Ltd, and Gebbia Entertainment LLC. Through these entities, Siebert provides a full range of brokerage and financial advisory services, including securities brokerage, investment advisory and insurance offerings, securities lending, and corporate stock plan administration solutions, in addition to entertainment and media productions. For over 55 years, Siebert has been a company that values its clients, shareholders, and employees. More information is available at www.siebert.com.

Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements
The statements contained in this press release that are not historical facts, including statements about our beliefs and expectations, are “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements preceded by, followed by, or that include the words “may,” “could,” “would,” “should,” “believe,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “plan,” “estimate,” “target,” “project,” “intend” and similar words or expressions. In addition, any statements that refer to expectations, projections, or other characterizations of future events or circumstances are forward-looking statements.

These forward-looking statements, which reflect beliefs, objectives, and expectations as of the date hereof, are based on the best judgment of the management of Siebert. All forward-looking statements speak only as of the date on which they are made. Such forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks, uncertainties and assumptions relating to factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those anticipated in such statements, including, without limitation, the following: economic, social and political conditions, global economic downturns resulting from extraordinary events; securities industry risks; interest rate risks; liquidity risks; credit risk with clients and counterparties; risk of liability for errors in clearing functions; systemic risk; systems failures, delays and capacity constraints; network security risks; competition; reliance on external service providers; new laws and regulations affecting Siebert’s business; net capital requirements; extensive regulation, regulatory uncertainties and legal matters; failure to maintain relationships with employees, customers, business partners or governmental entities; the inability to achieve synergies or to implement integration plans; and other consequences associated with risks and uncertainties detailed in Part I, Item 1A – Risk Factors of Siebert’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, and Siebert’s filings with the SEC.

Siebert cautions that the foregoing list of factors is not exclusive, and new factors may emerge, or changes to the foregoing factors may occur that could impact its business. Siebert undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise these statements, whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise, except to the extent required by the federal securities laws.

Media Contact
Deborah Kostroun, Zito Partners
deborah@zitopartners.com
+1 (201) 403-8185

A photo accompanying this announcement is available at https://www.globenewswire.com/NewsRoom/AttachmentNg/cca28fdf-fc44-4b26-8a62-2f005b866714

The MIL Network –

February 12, 2025

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